PJatO || Jercico || PJatO || Jercico || The Legacy of the Big Three || Jercico || PJatO || Jercico || PJatO
Title: The Legacy of the Big Three – Heroes of the Next Generation
Disclaimer: All rights reserved to Rick Riordan. Aside from the Gods, they belong to the old Greeks. This fanfiction and its OCs on the other hand are entirely mine. No money is made with this, though reviews are more than welcomed.
Tags: polyamory (m/m/m), superpowers/superheroes, hurt/comfort, fluff, mutual pining, explicit intercourse, anal, oral, double penetration, m/m, f/f, m/f
Main Pairing: Nico/Jason/Percy
Side Pairings: Reyna/Annabeth, Piper/Hazel, Frank/Leo, Octavian/Luke, Ethan/Alabaster, Jake/Will, Charles/Silena, Chris/Clarisse, Malcolm/Katie, Grover/Juniper, Bryce/Drew, Paul/Sally | Poseidon/Amphitrite, Hades/Maria | Hades/Persephone, Tristan/Beryl, Zeus/Hera, Howard/Hecate
Percy Jackson Characters: Perseus Jackson, Nico di Angelo, Jason Grace, Thalia Grace, Bianca di Angelo, Hazel Levesque, Piper McLean, Leo Valdez, Grover Underwood, Annabeth Chase, Reyna Avila Ramírez-Arellano, Frank Zhang, Luke Castellan, Ethan Nakamura, Alabaster C. Torrington, Lou Ellen Blackstone, Cecil Markowitz, Will Solace, Charles Beckendorf, Silena Beauregard, Clarisse la Rue, Chris Rodriguez,Travis Stoll, Connor Stoll, Jake Mason, Malcolm Pace, Katie Gardner, Miranda Gardner, Nyssa Barrera, Kayla Knowles, Zoe Nightshade, Octavian, Drew Tanaka, Bryce Lawrence, Mike Kahale, Lacy, Mitchell, Juniper, Rachel Elizabeth Dare, Ella, Tyson, Sally Jackson, Paul Blofis, Maria di Angelo, Tristan McLean, Beryl Grace, Esperanza Valdez, Howard Claymore, Small Bob, Mrs. O'Leary, Argentum, Aurum, Festus, Arion, Blackjack, Tempest
Gods: Zerberus, Hades, Persephone, Triton, Poseidon, Amphitrite, Zeus, Hera, Hecate, Chiron
Summary: Twenty-five years ago, the Olympians, led by the so-called Big Three, were the greatest group of superheroes in the world. One by one, they retired. There were still heroes, but there had not been a huge threat in many years. Now, the sons of the Big Three train at a school for heroes to be. Jason grew up under the pressure of being the son of Zeus, both from the public and from his father. Nico grew up knowing who his father was, but no one outside their family knows he is the son of Hades. And Percy? He has no idea he's the son of Poseidon.
The Legacy of the Big Three
Heroes of the Next Generation
Chapter 7: First Day of Classes!
Percy was bouncing on his chair essentially as soon as he sat down in the cafeteria. He was sitting with Grover, Annabeth and Annabeth's roommate. Piper, if Percy had remembered that correctly. So Percy guessed that Annabeth had bonded with her roommate, otherwise they would have gone separate ways. Percy craned his neck to look around for... He didn't know who.
"Hey there, Sea Prince. Your show was impressive. Want to see your future?"
A bit startled, he turned to face a redhead. She had just sat down next to him, a caramel-haired girl hot on her heels. The other girl was now sitting next to Grover, smiling at him and saying hello.
"Wait, you're the sooth-seer, right?", asked Percy after a moment.
"Rachel Dare. My roommate, Juniper Chios", replied the redhead with a nod.
Juniper, right. Plant-powers, specifically trees. Percy had taken notes on everyone from their grade, abilities and how strong they were. He just struggled with placing the faces with the names a little, because there were decidedly too many people to tell apart just yet. Rachel smiled at him and took his hand, turning it palm up and pressing her own hand against his.
"Whoa, nope", yelped Percy and pulled his hand away.
"Really?", asked Rachel curiously. "You talked so big, figured you wanted to know if you succeed."
"Where's the fun in that?", countered Percy. "I work hard for what I have achieved and I will continue to do so. If you tell me I'll get it, that'd just make it feel as though... it was always at the end of the road and I didn't earn it. And if I don't make it, well, that'd just make the fight for it more frustrating – because it definitely wouldn't make me stop trying."
Rachel hummed and raised her eyebrows at him. "You. You intrigue me. I will keep an eye on you."
"You have such a strange way of making friends, Percy", commented Annabeth dryly.
"You were so cool yesterday. Like, seriously, that was amazing!"
Percy yelped slightly at the eager voice and turned toward its owner. A pair of punks stood next to him, a guy with turquoise hair and a girl with purple hair. The girl seemed more relaxed than the guy, who was all up in Percy's face. They were followed by a pretty blonde.
"Cecil, you can't just...", grunted the blonde with a head-shake. "Hey, I'm Will, that's Cecil."
"And I'm Lou Ellen and I approve his message", declared the girl, pointing at Cecil. "Dude's right, you were massively impressive. I've seen water-users before, heck this year had like three of them. But your skills? You're a sorcerer. Are you taken?"
"Uh... I, uh, I'm currently single, but-", drawled Percy with red cheeks.
"Dude, no. Lesbian", grunted Lou Ellen amused and rolled her eyes. "I mean, do you have a team yet? I'm without connections here but I figured, I'd want a strong team."
"I'm strong", offered Cecil, wiggling his eyebrows.
"Speedsters, not overly powerful", countered Lou Ellen.
"Well, regular speedsters, but I'm-", started Cecil, just to hold up a wallet. "-also a thief. And a trickster. I have swift hands that aren't just fast."
"...So you're a thief. That's not very heroic", argued Annabeth with a judgmental look.
Lou Ellen, Cecil and Will all sat down with them. Percy grinned amused and leaned back, enjoying his chocolate croissant. This was going well; he had wanted to make friends here. Some people came in overly competitive and while a good rivalry could strengthen someone, there was more to it. He wanted a network, he wanted to create a superhero network – for that, he needed to be on good terms with the other great heroes of his generation. Chances were many of them were among this group of people, all the other teens who would start their first year at Chiron High today.
"You look at thievery as something bad, but now imagine me using those skills to steal the weapon out of the villain's hands before they can ever even shoot it. To free the captives before the villains know what hit them", countered Cecil with a broad grin. "Powers aren't good or bad. The people who use them are and it depends on how you use your powers. Like, you can turn invisible? That's great for bank-robberies and stuff! But that's not where you're gonna take them either, is it?"
Annabeth wasn't the only one looking impressed by that, Lou Ellen had one eyebrow cocked too.
"Will! Cecil! We've been looking for you, I though we'd sit togeth-"
Percy was already able to recognize the voice, which probably meant a lot. He turned to watch Nico approach them, the other boy immediately pausing when he recognized Percy, looking surprised.
"Grab a chair and join us? Or, well, grab another table and join us, it's getting crowded."
Not that Nico and Frank stayed alone at the table right next to them; Will and Lou Ellen took their chairs there too because the table really was over-crowded by now. And then Piper whistled loudly and waved two guys over too – Percy grinned at that. Jason Grace. There was an awkward stare-off between Nico and Jason before Jason finally actually sit down, mostly so because Leo just immediately sat down and started talking to Frank very animatedly. Or, at least Leo was talking animatedly, Frank just stared at Leo and nodded in appropriate places, flushing every now and again. How adorable, someone was not a morning person and didn't know how to deal with morning people and also definitely had a small crush on a morning person.
"So, are we in the same classes in anything?", asked Nico, leaning closely into Percy.
Percy felt his cheeks warm up at how close Nico was now, his chin nearly on Percy's shoulder. "I... would assume so. Elemental powers class. That's not like literature or math that everybody has to take. There's only one course. And while your control over shadows is only your secondary power, compared to your necromancy, I'm assuming you'll be in that course too."
That made Nico look peculiarly pleased. Well, Percy knew how to assess powers. While Nico's greatest strength was definitely magic – necromancy – he also had secondary powers. Shadows and, even smaller than that but still there, Earth-related powers.
"Also geokinesis. I assume. Your sister Hazel and your mom – I saw her after the ceremony on the grounds – both have geokinetic powers. There was a slight shake to it when you summoned the dead, it was nothing compared to Hazel's, but it was definitely there", continued Percy thoughtfully before smirking at Nico's reaction. "Hah. I'm right. I like when I'm right."
"I feel as though your powers go beyond hydrokinesis too", countered Nico with narrowed eyes.
"Well, wouldn't you like to know, Ghost King?", asked Percy teasingly, winking at him.
"Ghost King?", echoed Nico, eyebrows raised. "I... I like that. That sounds good."
"Will you two stop flirting? Like, not in front of my cereals!", exclaimed Leo annoyed, waving at them with a butter-knife. "The sexual tension can be cut! Stop it."
"Mh... my professional opinion, as a sooth-seer is, they won't", offered Rachel casually. "Ever."
She smirked at Percy and Nico, who were both blushing. That wasn't flirting! Percy was establishing a rival-relationship here! Not flirting! Granted, every framework he had to work with when it came to rivalries usually ended with him on AO3 reading 50k slow-burn Enemies to Lovers fics. So just maybe he wasn't working with the right material to learn how to have a proper rivalry.
"How are you gonna hold up, Blue Lightning?", asked Percy curiously.
"...Jason. Jason, he is talking to you", grunted Leo, elbowing Jason in the ribs.
The blonde sat up straight at that, looking adorably confused. "...Blue Lightning?"
"Yeah, I think we're assigning Percy the name-giver of our class", hummed Piper, head tilted. "That's a really good one. Paints a visual picture, it's dynamic, energetic. Definitely better than 'Zeus Junior'. Seriously, your father should not be allowed to name things."
"You know what, that's fair. He wanted to name me Herakles, since he knew his wife was going to be pissed about the second bastard kid. Thankfully, mom got to my birth-certificate first", grunted Jason and made a face. "Imagine getting the boy-version of your stepmother's name..."
Percy made a face before laughing. "Okay, but back to my question: You gonna be fine?"
Jason blinked slowly, eyes large, staring at Percy. "...Yeah, sure. I... I'm strong."
"Oh, honey, that wasn't the question", hummed Rachel bemused. "We all saw you're strong. But he asked if you'll be fine. That's two entirely different pair of shoes."
Now Jason turned to stare at her doe-eyed. The guy really had no poker-face, Percy wondered how long it'd take Jason to adjust to this new normal. Considering how often he had to face the press and public scrutiny, Percy really thought Jason would be more schooled in handling himself when backed into a corner, but if Percy had to hazard a guess – Jason wasn't used to having peers. Dealing with paparazzi was one thing; dealing with people his own age, in school, that was a setting Jason wasn't used to, having been home-schooled. It would take some adjusting.
"My boy Jason is going to be just fine, because I'll be right there with him", declared Leo with a light-hearted smile, patting Jason on the back. "Fire-user, and all."
Percy hummed, smiling a bit to himself. It was nice that Jason had someone in his corner. Though Percy didn't know why, he felt kind of protective of Jason. Then again, he wanted to become a hero, protect the innocent. This kid, who was doing something dangerous because his parents pushed him into it and not because he wanted it, of course did Percy feel protective. It was his duty as a hero to protect someone like that. That was it, right? It had to be.
/break\
"Okay, I'll see you guys after class? Leo, watch out for our Jay."
Piper hugged Jason tightly, which gave him a boost. The very first class Jason was going to head into was actually Elemental Control 101 and he could not be more nervous. Why not math, or chemistry, or literally anything normal where he wouldn't be specially gauged at...?
He wished he could be in class with Piper too, but her powers weren't elemental; hers were considered magical. Powers were at large split into three categories; elemental, magical and physical. Taking a deep breath, Jason let go of Piper and watched her go before he turned to follow Leo toward their classroom. It was great of course, Jason knew on a theoretical level that this was an incredible opportunity, even for him. Because his father, as powerful as he was, he was not a good teacher. This school though, everyone was trained. They had various guest-teachers who took turns teaching these special power-classes, so as many students as possible would have the chance to see their own powers manifested in their teacher and so the teaching didn't get stuck on one power alone; as much as an ice-user could break it down to the essentials so a fire-user could apply it, a teacher with only one set of powers may not be able to teach the greater nuance on another and since it simply wasn't feasible to have specific classes for ever element – or every sub-set of powers in general – the class took on rotating guest-teachers. Most of these guest-teachers were retired, or occasionally even active, superheroes. Jason prayed to every deity listening that his father wouldn't have the glorious idea to guest-teach just because Jason was at the school now.
The moment Leo and Jason entered the classroom, it fell silent. Just to nearly immediately start whispering very not so subtly. This... This wasn't fun. For the first time, Jason was actually thankful to his stepmother, for having homeschooled him. He didn't know if he could have lasted through his entire education with this kind of pressure. He took a very deep breath.
"Ja—ay! Leo! Come sit with us!", called Percy out loudly from the other end of the classroom.
Well, there was one guy who absolutely didn't mind drawing attention. No, he just grinned like a cat and waved at them. Leo didn't seem to mind, he immediately headed over. Then again, Leo was the kind of person to easily make friends. After all, Leo was absolutely lovable and kind. How could anyone look at Leo and not want to befriend him? Jason forced a smile and sat down next to Percy. On Percy's other side was Grover, bouncing in his chair a little, looking nervous, or anxious.
"I'm not a fighter, I'm a lover", muttered Grover beneath his breath as he noticed Jason's gaze.
"...Well, I can relate to that", whispered Jason back with the smallest smile.
"I am so looking forward to sparring with you though", declared Percy, looking at Leo.
"Yeah? Because you'd have an easy time winning, Water Boy?", huffed Leo.
"...Yeah no, you're not good at giving names", laughed Percy, shaking his head. "And no. I mean, sure, I have a Pokémon type advantage here, but fire is powerful. Water's no good if you get overwhelmed. And you seemed pretty powerful."
Jason tuned them out as they started geeking out about Pokémon, instead he scanned the room to see who else attended this class. He saw Nico and Hazel sitting more in the back, there was Juniper from this morning too. That were all the people he actually recognized.
"Good morning, class. I am Chiron Brunner. I'm going to be your main teacher in this course and, if you have read up on the school, you already know that this class will feature various guest-teachers, specialized on individual elemental powers."
Chiron Brunner was an impressive form. What with his bottom-half looking like a horse. Which made it all the more peculiar that he taught this class, of all classes; his power was physical.
"Now, some of you may wonder why I am teaching this class. I'm the coordinating teacher of this class. Because you kids need someone you can talk to and because I have experience teaching superheroes of all kinds of powers, back in the days before we even categorized powers. Before there ever even was an actual school for superheroes. Imagine if you had to go out into the world, to find a mentor for yourselves?"
Chiron chuckled bemused at some of the students' reactions. Jason, he already knew this. Chiron had trained Zeus himself – among other big names. One of the good things his father had done, Jason supposed; Zeus had largely bankrolled this school, together with many of the other former students of Chiron's. While being a superhero itself didn't bring money – everything with their image did very much earn them part of the money it made. Comics, cartoons, books, merchandise. The former Olympians got pretty rich on that alone over the years, especially with current movie-deals and live-action TV shows about them. People were obsessed with the glory of the past.
"We've seen you all display your powers in your own... pace, so to speak. Showing off. What I need is for you all to show me your limits. I need to know how strong you are, how much you can handle and when you reach your limit. There is absolutely nothing wrong with reaching your limit, do not push yourselves farther than that. Seeing as these kind of things tend to make kids uncomfortable when their peers are watching, I will be setting up individual appointments with each of you throughout this week. Today is going to be very boring for you, because we will just go through technical terms and classifications of powers."
A groan went through the class collectively. The only one sighing relieved to himself was Jason. He had feared that the limit-display would be public too. Though it figured that Chiron was aware of how much kids liked to pit themselves against each other, which wasn't always healthy. Not everyone took it as well as Percy and Nico did when someone wasn't up to a rivalry.
"This class it only occasionally taking place indoors", offered Chiron as consolation. "Due to your powers, it will take place outside. Where there is actual Earth to manipulate and you don't run the risk of burning down the entire school on accident. Or flooding it."
That made most of the class laugh and even Jason felt himself relax. Something about Chiron was very reassuring. Maybe, just maybe, this class could actually be fun. Jason admitted that he was looking forward to having someone actually teach him his powers.
"I do wanna spar with you too", whispered Percy, leaning very closely into Jason. "All in good humor, okay? I promise I won't wipe the floor with you."
Jason flushed a little at just how close Percy was. The other was just... cute and kind and made Jason's heart flutter a bit? He turned, on instinct, when he felt eyes bore in the back of his head. Nico di Angelo was staring at him with an unreadable expression. Those two, Jason had a feeling, were going to be the defining factors of Jason's high school experience.
/break\
Class with Chiron was surprisingly boring. Facts and figures. Nico had hoped for some action – and also for a show. He craved to see Percy use his powers again, it had been truly inspiring, like a work of art. And, admittedly, also Jason. The blonde intrigued him, though he also kind of rubbed Nico the wrong way? Both? Which was very confusing, if Nico was honest.
"Oh my everything, you are the sweetest and cutest!"
If Nico closed his eyes, he could imagine Percy saying these words to him and not to Nico's dog. He had figured it was time to introduce Percy to Mrs. O'Leary, because during Chiron's class, Percy had mentioned the stables – they had facilities taking care of animal companions. So Nico had decided to tag along and show off his dog. Mrs. O'Leary immediately took to Percy, tackling him, whining and licking his face. Nico smiled as he watched, though then his attention was drawn by two other dogs who came sniffing along as they heard Mrs. O'Leary's barking. The dogs were peculiar; one was golden and the other was silver. Following them was Hazel's roommate, Reyna.
"Mh. Another dog-person. Very nice", hummed Reyna pleased. "That is a big, beautiful one."
"She is. Though yours are... really special too", countered Nico, tilting his head.
"Powered dogs. They're hounds who can shift their skin into metal. They have been trained and listen to every command from me", offered Reyna. "What can yours do? Aside from... just... sit on a villain and flatten them effectively. Seriously, that is one big dog."
"She is a hellhound, she can travel through shadows", replied Nico.
"Ah. You're compensating. Clever. Shadows are a part of your power, but not your dominant one."
Nico hummed in confirmation, side-eyeing Reyna. He liked her attitude. Him and Frank were still looking for a third team member. Being a dog-person was a must for that and adding two more dogs to the team definitely appealed to Nico. If he remembered correctly from the introductions, her powers were physical. Super-strength. That could be handy.
"You don't have a team yet, if I remember that correctly, right?", asked Nico after a beat.
"No. I actually came here alone", confirmed Reyna. "But according to Mr. Brunner, we got a month time before we have to form teams."
Which was true, since not everyone already knew someone. And even after that time-period, students would be allowed to change teams throughout the first year, nothing would be set until then. Teams were supposed to be three people – the Golden Trio formula. To teach the heroes of tomorrow to work with others; be that an actual superhero team, a side-kick or simply coordinating with local law-enforcement. Team-work was key for a hero, one couldn't push through as a lone wolf. Even solo-superheroes would be required to cooperate with others.
"More dogs! Amazing. I love this place!"
Both Nico and Reyna turned toward Percy and couldn't help but laugh as the boy was buried beneath three dogs now, playing with them all. Being a dog-person was also very essential for Nico's future boyfriend. He startled and barely managed to duck as Mrs. O'Leary suddenly bolted off. Frowning, he quickly turned around to watch his dog tackle someone. Okay, that was something he needed to teach her not to do. She just loved cuddles so much and generally, she had good instincts on who to go to and who would give her good cuddles.
"Wo—oah, you are the biggest puppy I have ever seen. Oh, and you are cuddly? Good dog, very good dog, yes you are. Oh, I always wanted a dog."
Nico frowned as he watched Jason Grace ruffling Mrs. O'Leary's fur and look... genuinely happy for the very first time. Just, carefree and happy. Percy made an offended noise and got up to follow Mrs. O'Leary, putting the hellhound into total bliss at getting double-cuddles.
Author's note: Next chapter, we're going to peek into class and look at how well they're going to do!