EDITED: 08 May 2021
Author's Note: This story is loosely based on the plot of Lost Shall be Found by SilverMoon2465. You can check out her story. I have not yet read The Trials of Apollo, so this story is just in the early TLT canon. Anna will have her separate story, she will not join Percy, Annabeth, and Grover.
Also, the story will be following TLT movieverse with some book thrown into the mix. I saw someone fancast Sam Claflin as Apollo and I am not opposed to it.
I only own Leia/Anna.
It was a dark and stormy night. The sky was ominous, seemingly mad, unsettled. The brothers found themselves looking down on Manhattan, watching the city breathe as though the city itself was alive.
Zeus ran a hand over his face, sighing in exhaustion. "What do you see?" he asked his brother, as they stared far ahead into the horizon.
"Thunderclouds," the God of the Sea answered, eyeing his brother warily.
"But no lightning," Zeus said grimly, "It was stolen." He glanced at his brother maliciously. Poseidon turned to him, gauging his face. There was suspicion, there was accusation.
Poseidon looked at him in disbelief, "What? You think I took it?" Zeus said nothing, but the expression on his face was enough. He distrusted his brother, believing him to be the thief. "Omnipotence has blinded you, brother. We are forbidden from stealing each other's powers."
"But our children aren't," the God of the Sky said.
The implication was heavy, making Poseidon grit his teeth.
"You're accusing my son?" Poseidon asked, fists clenching. "I haven't seen him since he was a baby. He doesn't know me, or even who he is because of you."
Zeus narrowed his eyes. "If your son is the lightning thief, I will send him to the depths of Tartarus."
Poseidon, mad at his brother for threatening his only son, held Zeus by the lapels of his trench coat, "If you touch him, you will have the fight of your life."
Thunder rumbled loudly and Zeus broke free from Poseidon's grasp. They were both prideful and refused to back down from this. Zeus made sure to straighten the lapels of the coat his brother grasped.
"He must return the bolt to me in fourteen days, in midnight of the summer solstice," Zeus blasted the entrance to Olympus and glared at his brother, "Or there will be war."
"Your despair has changed you, brother," Poseidon called out after him, "The loss of your Leia has made you thirst for war, but I am not your enemy."
Zeus' eyes closed at the mention of his lost daughter, "No," he said, "Not yet." He turned away, leaving Poseidon alone under the blanket of a lightning-less storm.
"Hey Mom, Anna, I'm home!"
"I'm up here honey," his mother called out, smiling as she saw her son come in.
"Heya, Perce," Anna greeted from the couch.
"Hi," he greeted again, throwing his backpack onto the nearest chair.
"How was school today?" his mom asked, ironing some clothes.
"The usual," he answered, as he leaned in to kiss his mother's cheek and moved to the couch to kiss his sister's. Anna smiled at this, despite Percy being sixteen, a little too old to be showing affection to his sibling, it never stopped him once. It was the bond that the three had made: they were family, and as the "man of the house" (Percy's words), it was his "obligation to keep his girls safe" (also his words).
"I think this… uh… dyslexia thing is getting worse."
"Hey," Anna frowned at this, reaching out from behind her to hand him a book, "Mr. Brunner gave this to me earlier. It's Greek Mythology, he thought you might be interested." Percy shrugged and threw the book back to his sister, uninterested.
Anna scowled, throwing her brother a glare.
"Oh, why do you think that?" his mother asked him.
Percy sighed, "I don't know, maybe it's the ADHD. I thought this school was supposed to make this better."
His mother scowled from where she was ironing. "Percy, I know how hard this is for you, but someday it'll all make sense."
"Really?" he asked, frustrated, "When? Hmm? Tonight? Tomorrow? When?"
"Perce," Anna looked at him, silently telling him to drop the subject.
To be fair, Sally was being rather vague. She always told them that someday it will get better-somehow. Like one day, their dyslexia would be gone and they wouldn't get expelled from every school they go to. Anna knew better than to ask. She tried to ask years ago, but her mother had only ignored her or changed the topic of the conversation. Anna also tried now that she was a little older, thinking that her mother would finally divulge some information, yet Sally would only give her a small smile and shook her head.
Suddenly, the door flew open, revealing Sally Jackson's husband, their stepfather, Smelly Gabe. His name is actually Gabe Ugliano, but Anna and Percy call him Smelly Gabe for obvious reasons.
"Woman!" he exclaimed, settling on his seat. Sally gave him a "hi," Percy sighed in a "here-we-go-again" gesture, and Anna kept her head down, ignoring him altogether. "Where's my beer?"
"It's in the fridge," Anna answered, not looking up.
Smelly Gabe sneered, "So what, it's supposed to magically float from the icebox and into my hand?"
"Maybe," Percy muttered under his breath. His mother stopped ironing to get him the beer when Anna stopped her. "It's okay, Mom, I'll do it."
Sally smiled gratefully at her daughter.
"Hustle," Smelly Gabe laughed, hitting Anna's backside as she passed by him. Her fists clenched in rage, but she did not turn. She just kept walking and got him his beer.
Percy, however, would not stand for this disrespect. "Hey man, keep your hands to yourself. Have some decency."
Anna came up to him and placed a hand on his chest, "It's okay, Percy, just drop it."
"No, Anna," he replied, and looked back to his stepfather, "You show some respect, all right? This is my sister."
Gabe, a hand still on his beer, stood up. "Gabe please," Anna stood in front of her brother, but was pushed away by him. He eyed Percy closely, his free hand came up to pull Percy's hair on top of his head.
"This is my house. You show some respect," he said and moved to the other room.
Anna was moving forward, and try to defend her brother when she heard her mother say no. "No, please," her mother shook her head.
"Come on, Mom. Why?" she made a face, her voice a loud whisper, "Why do you stay with that pig? He smells like a sewer."
"Yeah," Percy agreed, "He sleeps until noon every day and he can't even hold a job. Why do you stay with him?"
"He's been good to us, in ways you just… you don't understand."
Percy shook his head in disbelief, "You're right. I don't understand. I don't get it." He walked out to the balcony.
Anna sighed. "Mom, just… forgive Percy, he's a little—"
"It's okay, Anna. I understand why Percy's angry. I… I'm sorry," she smiled apologetically, "One day you'll know why."
There it was again. Anna nodded, but she, too, can't understand why.
Anna wondered what life would have been like if their father was there with them. She had never met her father. Sometimes, when she'd close her eyes, she could see a lot of faces, smiling at her. A woman, not her mother Sally, beautiful and elegant and lovely and godlike. And a man, her father maybe: powerful, loving, gentle, and kind. Sometimes, when she'd be in between sleep and wake, she could remember the love in their eyes and their beautiful smiles.
Their mother doesn't like talking about their father. Anna thought that it's because it makes her sad. There were no pictures, they weren't married. She said that their dad was someone important, and so their relationship was a secret. Then one day, he set sail across the Atlantic on some important journey, and he never came back. Lost at sea, she had told them. Not dead. Lost at sea.
Hera cradled her newborn in her arms, tears flowing down her cheeks. "She's so beautiful, Zeus. So, so beautiful."
Zeus, her husband, nodded in agreement, lifting one finger to trace his daughter's delicate features. Her hair was licorice-black, like her mother's and her eyes opened and revealed her father's electric blue eyes. She giggled loudly, making her godly parents laugh in delight.
"My beautiful goddess, Leia," Zeus smiled at her, "You will grow and be the Goddess of Thunder, and I, your Father, promise you that no harm will ever come to you as long as I live."
"And I," Hera added, placing a kiss on Leia's forehead.