Hi! I'm back, sorry this chapter took forever to write... between the work for my book that took the better part of my time for nearly half a year, and a bad case of writer block, I had half the chapter writen and didn't quite know where to go from there...
You'll notice that not all the character are always in a chapter quite simply because there's so many of them it's not just possible... If I'm not telling anything about them, assume that their life is progressing too - if anything notable happen it will be touched upon the next time I talk about them.
Chapter XI. East and West United
"Don't you need to stay near the portal?" Arachne asked as Adra got up and they made to cross the chasm on a bridge made of spiderwebs – just like Annabeth had planned, the witch noted with some humor
"They'll send word when they don't need it anymore," she answered, "don't worry about it."
They started to walk through the long corridors, quite faster than when they'd arrived, as if the whole area had stopped trying to slow them down- which wasn't impossible with magic and quests.
Soon, Adra and Arachne were back in Mithras' temple, and taking the upward corridor. After a while, it opened on the bottom of a well – climbing up wasn't too hard between the two of them, and they stepped out in what appeared to be the cellar of a shop – either a toy shop, or one that sold trinkets to tourists, given what was stored in the area.
Arachne paused at the edge of the door, eyes wide.
"Never has dawn seemed so beautiful." she whispered with near religious awe
Her eyes shone as she looked around her – at the shop they'd just stepped out, at the girl she was seeing in daylight for the first time, at the city that had changed so much since she'd last been free.
"This," she proclaimed "this is going to be my next work as soon as I find a place to stay!"
Shadows swirled – and out stepped Remus and Pyxis, which Adra had called but a few moments ago "Merry Yule, little sister." Death greeted
"Merry Yule brother." she agreed, hugging him, then Remus
"So what was this about our properties in the city?" Pyxis wondered "Are you already bored with Hogwarts?" he teased
"I didn't go there for the school-work." Adra pointed out with a laugh "And well, Arachne here has been stuck out of the world for a long time, and I think she'll need a bit of help to fall back on her feet."
"Well while the Black don't have anything in the area, the Potter do own a Roman Villa." Remus answered
"You could stay there for a while if you wish." Adra said "But I'm afraid that though there aren't many Romans gods and half-bloods in the area, there are historical reminders everywhere."
Arachne nodded – they were walking through the city, and it was already evident to her.
"If you have somewhere in mind Pyxis could open a portal for you…" at her brother's raised eyebrow she explained "I'm still keeping a portal toward Camp Half-Blood open." before turning back toward the spider woman "Or… you could come home with us."
"That would be rather counter-productive to getting away from the Greeks and the Romans." Arachne couldn't help but point out – though she did look rather thankful that the proposal had been made at all
"Ah but you see…" Adra winked "Greeks and Romans are just some among the multitude in the wixen world, we believe in all of the gods, and everyone choose who to worship."
The argument made Arachne's eyes widen, and she realized "You… Aren't a Greek or a Roman half-blood, are you?"
"We aren't." Pyxis was the one to confirm "Pluto did claim her in Camp Jupiter, but that was more for convenience sake."
"We live with Greek and Roman half-bloods," Remus added "But also with Norse and Celt ones."
The woman was clearly hesitant. While she didn't want to stay near any Greek or Roman – she also didn't want to be alone anymore.
There was a bit of hesitation in her eyes, but finally, she nodded "I'll come."
The trio stepped through the shadows – leaving the bright and rather loud and bustling city for the far calmer forest patch where the Lovegood, Lupin and Black Moon houses were built.
Luna was on the doorway of the Black Moon House "We've got breakfast ready!" she said
Indeed – the table was set for the right number of people, as the young seer had clearly predicted the outcome of the quest.
"How are Annabeth and Jason?" a worried Frederick immediately asked
"We could see bits of what was happening by scrying the pond." Anubis explained "But not everything."
"They're taking the statue back to Camp Half-Bood." Adra explained, realizing that indeed there was holy magic bubbling in the clear pond of her garden, and she could even see some images on the water surface – Annabeth and Jason had reached camp, and with the year-rounders and satyrs help, were currently dragging the statue from her portal
"Here," Luna had a set of wooden lunch-boxes ready "You should probably go join them, the gods will notice the quest's completion."
"And I should be there?" she asked, an eyebrow raised – she had after all more or less attempted to stay under the radar until now
"You should." Luna nodded "Changes are well underway, nothing can do anything about it anymore."
Adra nodded – and accepting the boxes, could finally drop her portal as the statue went through, and open a new one for herself. As she stepped through, she heard the whimsy blond ask Arachne "So, have you ever thought about using some dye for your silk? Or maybe a few enchantments?"
¤.¤.¤
The day may have been starting in England – it was still the middle of the night in Long Island.
The campers and satyrs were torn between being grumpy at having been woken up and brimming with curiosity about the trio's accidental quest.
As for Chiron – to say he was stunned would be an understatement.
"Welcome back, questers." he managed to greet nonetheless as Adra arrived just as the campers and satyrs were dropping on the ground around the newly recovered statue "though I didn't expect your arrival."
"I accidentally stumbled on one of my brothers' token for a quest during the holidays." Annabeth explained succinctly
"We should get rid of the cocoon." Jason mused "After all, that's what's hiding the statue's powers, right?"
Annabeth nodded – and the trio, soon aided by all those around them, got to work on the layers upon layers of thin yet extra-solid spider-silk. Finally, about what felt like hours but hadn't lasted more than half of one, the last thread fell to the ground, and godly powers flared around them, forcing all the campers to the ground under the pure, undiluted power.
[Life Quest Complete! Athena's Mark…
Goal Complete: You've brought the Athena Parthenos back to Camp Half Blood
Reward: +10XP, unlocks Two as One perk]
[new perk unlocked
Two as One (5PP): a Greek/Roman demi-god can now unlock the powers of his godly parent counterpart in the twin pantheon
Available: 14PP]
Adra and Denys were the only one not affected of course – and the Greek god let out a string of curse when he realized that neither the child goddess nor him had managed to hide their reaction, or rather lack of thereof, in time, as all of the other Olympians had just arrived in camp.
Both shared a glance, then before the half-bloods could notice – Adra and Denys were to the ground with them while a body-double of Dionysus was among his godly family.
Hermes smiled happily at Adra, knowing her well enough by now that he knew if she hadn't wanted to be there, she wouldn't be, while Artemis nodded politely, Apollo winked eagerly and Hades raised an intrigued eyebrow.
"Rise, demi-gods." Zeus finally allowed, the powers around them finally reigned in enough that their children could manage it
Athena shared a glance with her father, then stepped forward.
They had all, Adrasteia noticed, changed in ways – more or less subtle depending on the god.
"You have done me, and all of us a great service, young heroes." the goddess proclaimed "Step forward, Annabeth Chase, quest leader, my daughter."
"Jason Grace, son of Jupiter." Zeus called, the proclamation making some confused and intrigued mutters raise among the few half-bloods in presence "come forward."
"Adrasteia Potter-Black, emissary of Pluto and Hades," the god of death completed, rather smug at the surprised look it earned him from his brothers "come forward."
"For two thousand years, Romans and Greek have been at odds…" Athena took over, filling away for now her uncle's claim – and ignoring Dionysus grumbled 'whose fault was it' "But today, finally, what was stolen has been restored, and peace can be attained once more."
"So feast in our heroes name today, young half-bloods, for they have earned their laurels."
As if waiting for the words, the dryads and naiads stepped out of the woods and the nearby lake, and a mouth-watering odor erased the last thoughts of sleep in all of the children's mind. Jason and Annabeth were eyeing the food longingly – but the trio hadn't been dismissed.
"Let us relocate." Zeus' voice boomed "I think we'll want to hear all about this quest."
"I'll take them!" Apollo volunteered, a flamboyant red convertible car appearing out of nowhere
The sporty car wasn't very big – but then again, neither were Annabeth, Jason and Adra. The witch claimed the more comfortable place by Apollo's own by virtue of being the oldest, while the two half-bloods settled in the back while grumbling – and soon forgetting about any form of protest when they were handed the lunchboxes Luna had prepared by Adrasteia.
"Well you're having a busy end of the year," the sun god commented as his car roared to life and lifted of "I mean exorcism in that magic school, now you find Athy's old statue…"
"Well apparently there's only a few years left before the world is either saved or doomed." Adra answered idly, opening her lunchbox
Annabeth raised an eyebrow at the 'Athy' but was far too focused on the crumpets dripping in rosemary honey to comment. Jason was munching his toast while eagerly watching the city under them while Adra, breaking under the surprisingly effective puppy eyes of the blond god, shared her own breakfast with him – something Luna must have seen coming given the larger than usual share in her box.
"So no more hiding from pop?"
"It wasn't hiding." Adra corrected "It was strategically avoiding being seen to avoid headaches." she answered, making both god and demi-gods laugh, before shrugging "But well, there are enough things that have changed now, that he can't undo easily." a shrug "And I've gone thought four rites already, using my powers won't hurt my body like it would have when I was younger."
¤.¤.¤
On top of the Empire State Building, they felt the familiar feeling of the Mist curling around them more heavily, and suddenly – the whole top of a mountain was appearing, and they weren't in the mortal realm anymore.
The Greek city sprawling on the flanks of Olympus was bustling with life, minor gods and spirits going about their life. Annabeth and Jason were watching eagerly, rather enthralled by their first peak at a godly city – Adra was rather interested too, though by now she'd already visited both the Sidh and Asgard enough time that it wasn't as fascinating for her as them.
Not to mention of course that in her totally not biased opinion – the Immortal Realm was far better!
Apollo was a surprisingly good tour guide, pointing out the market place, the different temples around and even buying a few sticks of marinated ambrosia – though he did warn Annabeth and Jason not to eat more than a few mouthfuls at once. Both children had listened, knowing very well how dangerous godly food could be for half-bloods, and had quickly put away the treats in their empty lunchboxes after tasting them.
Neither child was particularly surprised to see Adrasteia munching just as enthusiastically as the sun god - while they had never really put the word goddess on her, they knew she was something different…
Soon enough, they arrived at the largest temple, where the other gods were already waiting in their thrones. Zeus had a tick on his brow, showing he was annoyed but not surprised his son had taken his time.
"So," Athena was the one to talk first, curiosity plain in her voice "what are you?"
"How rude." Hermes sighed, earning both a glare and a blush – he wasn't really wrong after all, though the gods rarely cared about being rude toward mortals
"Oh you know." Adra shrugged "Just an incarnate sent to prevent this world from fucking itself."
"Hey isn't 'incarnate' the world Leifr uses to explain his fusion with Nuada?" Jason wondered
He hadn't talked loud – but of course, given that they were among gods, all heard.
"From which pantheon do you hail and what are you doing on our territory?" Zeus demanded
"Well… she was claimed by Pluto and Hades." Apollo couldn't help but remind everyone
"Yet she can't be Greek nor Roman."
Adra hadn't met the woman talking yet – but one glance at the golden, peacock ornamented jewelry she wore made it easy to guess who this was.
She tilted her head – with her long, wavy black hair, soft golden brow eyes and regal traits…
Hera felt more weary that arrogant, and she found herself wondering how this goddess could have been the one to put Leo in such danger, and cast such a harsh curse on Frank. It had seemed rather evident at the time – this was a goddess rather renowned for her hatred of all half-bloods.
But from what she was seeing right now, there had to be more to the story.
"Why don't you take a guess?" Adra suggested
Zeus' temper seemed to flare, taking the words as a taunt, and his aura flared – it would have been enough to crush both Annabeth and Jason, but of course since they were so close to the witch, she simply curled her aura around them in a protective, familiar embrace.
"Are you going to kill your own son and grand-daughter on a temper tantrum?" Adrasteia mused, far from scared by the show of power
Oh sure enough, Zeus had far more power than say Odin or Lug currently had, after all, Western culture was still predominant even if muggles didn't pray to them anymore.
But like she'd said to Apollo – Adrasteia's body, between her Fourth Rite and her change from witch to half youkai spirit, was far from the fragile thing it had been in her youth.
And while all the power available to her as Shadow wasn't at the tip of he fingers in the mortal world, she did have abilities that let her tap in those powers from time to time thanks to her Past Life Aura. And said aura had only grown more powerful as she did.
Zeus right now rated more as a headache – a big one sure enough – than a threat to her. Especially given that no matter how unreasonable he could be, the god still felt that it fell within his duty to protect this world from true danger like the Titans or other powerful beings even the demi-gods couldn't hope to fight.
The rest of the Olympians inched back, all of them more than used to the catastrophic consequences usually following when anyone dared to raise their leader's temper. Instead, the ocean of power tapered down, and the smell of ozone receded. Electric blue eyes sparkled as he hummed "Just as I though, I recognize this power. You're the one from Boston."
Those that hadn't realized yet – mostly those that hadn't met Adra – turned toward her, stunned.
"And clearly, this isn't new to quite a few among us." his gaze lingered on the girl, anger cleared and replace by the eyes of a leader that knew he was missing something important and didn't like it
So gathering her best wixen manners, Adra let go of her aura and glamour and curtsied, announcing clearly "I am Adrasteia Lyra, heiress of the house of Potter, incarnate of Shadow. I have been sent to change the Fates of this world, remind the gods of their powers and duty, and save this world from the Abyss." her eyes wandered across the gods whose faces were showing various level of surprise, incredulity or curiosity
Zeus wanted to protest, to rage, to tempest – the sky around them had darkened, thunder was rumbling and a storm was gathering above New York.
But right now, he could also feel the power that was so lovingly protecting the two half-bloods by the girl's side, not carefully leashed nor hidden anymore. This was a kind of power he'd never thought he would ever see in the mortal realms, and now that he'd understood what he was seeing, he could even feel the bindings allowing the girl to live as a mortal…
¤.¤.¤
"Old One." he finally acknowledged
He didn't bow – but his voice finally wasn't that of one speaking to a lesser being, but to an equal.
Which wasn't quite it either, Adra mused with some amusement – but while they all knew she was higher in the pecking order, they were in the Greek's territory and the king of the sky had already toned down his attitude quite a bit, so she could work with this.
"Incarnating in the mortal realm is a rather unusual approach for a god of the First Circle." Hera was the one to muse, curiosity clear in he tone
"I'm not the most usual goddess." Adra admitted easily "And while incarnating is my usual modus operandi, the situation here is far direr than in the worlds I've visited previously."
"The Abyss." the queen goddess nodded, not surprised "This Age is coming to an end, and not a good one, if you care to look farther than just our own little bit of the world."
Zeus turned toward his wife, looking rather stunned.
Suddenly, Adra understood.
Understood why despite how incensed she'd been against the goddess, Esperanza hadn't seemed that put out when she'd come back several more times since Leo's training had started.
Understood how the goddess in front of her, whose very powers were tied to maternal and familial love could have done something as terrible as the curse she'd inflicted on Frank.
Desperation.
Hera had managed what few among the various pantheons had – looking beyond the area influenced by her family, she'd realized that no matter whether the current batch of heroes succeed or failed, it didn't really change anything, as the catastrophe were coming more and more often, and soon even the gods themselves wouldn't be able to save their world from the forces that seemed to conspire against it.
Indeed, surprising everyone, the goddess leaned back in her throne, and suddenly, all the weight that had been resting on her shoulder was visible to all as she let out a laugh that couldn't hide the bone deep exhaustion and strain in her voice. There was a fragile hint of hope in her voice as she asked "Can you really do it?"
"Alone? Of course not." Adra contradicted "But I'm not alone, am I?"
Hera eyed Annabeth and Jason, both basking in the goddess' powers without realizing anything was amiss when so often the half-bloods were terrified of godly powers that weren't those of their parent.
"No, I dare say you're not." she agreed, seeing like only a goddess of family could the intricate web of family bonds around the girl
The shard of hope grew in her eyes.
"Then by any mean, tell us what we must do!"
Zeus temper was flaring again, not liking when anyone dared to give orders instead of him – he was also a husband who knew well the will of steel hidden under his wife's beautiful and regal appearance. And right now, he could hold on his temper, because he was still far more in shock over the fact that Hera had hidden so well her worries all of this time – and he had been completely fooled.
So for the love of his wife – and he may like to fool around, he did love her – this once he'd let her take charge.
Besides, he had to admit himself – it was kind of sexy.
"Start by caring a bit more." Adra said "Small steps will go a long way, look at the Norse."
"Things have changed in Asgard," Hermes was the one to nod "the last poker night was there, for the first time in centuries, and it had been a while since I last saw so many gods there."
"That's because they've accepted that the tapestry has changed." Apollo grumbled "I've been telling you for years! The Moirai have been telling you!" he said to his father
"Well I'm listening now." the king pointed out
"Better late than never." the sun god mused – not noticing how startled everyone around him was to see him in a bad mood
"It's time for you to remember that your pantheon is only one among many." Adra said "That sometimes, quests, enemies or even regular mortal event will cross the borders."
"I mean, my cousin is a son of Frey." Annabeth mumbled "And it didn't change my life to know it."
"And the wixen chose who to pray to and that doesn't mean they disrespect the other gods."
"There are a lot of things to do but…" Adra smiled "Start by taking a bit more care of your children."
All of the gods had had half-bloods turned their eyes toward Zeus, who realized not for the first time how unpopular the interdiction to interact with their children was.
"But the old laws…"
"Caring like a parent doesn't mean to grant their every whim, nor am I telling you to take them to Olympus and raise them." a shrug "But visits from time to time won't change the face of the world, but will mean the world for them."
It was impossible to miss the hope in Annabeth and Jason's eyes – and watching his son, Zeus' appearance shifted for a moment to that of Jupiter. Even the boy saw it, eyes widening as he realized that despite what his sister always told – the god did care.
"Get back in touch with the mortal realm," Adra advised "and what can be allowed or not will become evident." she gestured toward New York far underneath "The world has changed, and it is your duty to adapt to it, just as it is your privilege to reign upon your domain." her glare hardened
"And stop being so bigoted toward your own brother when he reigns upon on of the most important thing in the mortal realm, him being just as powerful doesn't mean he has any intention to steal your crown."
Hades hadn't expected the comment, if his widening eyes were to be believed, but the comment couldn't help but startle an answer out of him – the same answer he'd given Adra if they were in the Underworld rather than on Olympus "Oh please no! Don't even joke about it, little Shadow! I've got more than enough work managing my domain, you know it!"
The outburst was spontaneous enough that all knew it to be true – and all among them eyed the dark, generally gloomy man with wide eyes when they realized that he was far more lively than usual in the presence of the goddess he'd claimed as emissary.
"That's because you don't delegate enough."
"Please! I tried to delegate the courts, and look at the bastard they chose! Each time I turn my eyes there's someone doing something stupid! Death doesn't give a brain to idiots!"
"Then why don't you send a few emissary keep an eye on the mortal world to find the one worth hiring easily once they pass rather than just keeping an eye on those that need punishing?"
Hades' eyes widened, and from the gleam in his eyes, it was clear he liked the idea. He turned toward Annabeth and Jason "Would this interest demi-gods?"
"Well, it depend on the advantages." Annabeth mused "I mean, I've heard about the einherjar from mister Borson, and it looks to me that it could be interesting to have a job in the after-life." she pointed out, surprising quite a few of the gods – and Jason offering his own nod to agree with her
"You've given us much to think about." Zeus mused "I can't say we'll change in one day…"
"And I don't expect you to."
"But…" he eyed his family, eyes settling on Hera last "May be allowing more visitations for a start?"
Hera looked both disgruntled and approving.
Finally, she sighed "I've got nothing against those children." eyeing the stunned reaction around her she rolled her eyes "Yes I reacted badly before, but that was over two thousands years ago! And you weren't any better at that time!" a shrug "Most of the time, children born out of wedlock are condemned to a life without family-bonds because of how poorly it is seen." her eyes glowed briefly as she dipped in her powers "It is slowly changing, but still… Sleeping around for a good time without thinking about how you're hurting your partner, or the life you're condemning those children to is something I'll always disapprove!"
"Well," Hades pointed out "Persephone and I have come to an agreement on the topic." the gods remembered the talk his wife had started with Aphrodite a few months before and weren't too surprised "And being allowed to see the children more will help with the family bonds, won't it?"
Hera was struggling.
"I don't really like it," she admitted "but… You must be at least be doing somewhat right, because your bond with you wife has deepened recently."
"It has!" Aphrodite agreed enthusiastically "One point for polyamory!"
Adra had to refrain from rolling her eyes – how was it that with Greek gods, things always ended up being about sex?
Annabeth and Jason were sharing a glance and rolling their eyes, clearly thinking the same.
¤.¤.¤
Somewhat catching on their thoughts, Zeus called took the talk back to its original topic "Anyway, young heroes." the children straightened back to attention "The quest you've completed today was crucial not only for Camp Half-Blood, but also for New Rome. This call for an announce there too, and your contribution toward peace will be honored there too."
Jason's eyes shone in hope, as the gods around them seemed to shimmer, appearances changing subtly "As such, we shall pay a visit to the Senate, they should have had enough time to call for an assembly by now."
The Roman demi-god barely managed to smother his enthusiastic shriek at the affirmation – but given the fond glance his father sent his way, it was clear he hadn't been as successful as he though.
"Need another ride?" Apollo, who just like Aphrodite had barely changed, winked
"I know the way." Adra contradicted, shadows swirling in the familiar shape of her portals
The god nodded – and the next moment they disappeared, while the trio of questers stepped in the shadows
Just like Jupiter had said, an assembly had been called, and where the amphitheater had been all but empty the last time Adra had come by, this time it was filled to the brim, a multitude of demi-gods and legacies wearing togas and other clearly roman clothes muttering anxiously.
Already stunned by the arrival of the gods that were so rarely seen in their camp, their surprise only increased at the rather strange trio – Annabeth and Jason wearing regular modern clothing under the pieces of armor they own, and Adra with her clearly Asian outfit.
Just like in Camp Half Blood, the gods proclaimed the reparation, made after centuries, of an age old offense of the Roman against the Greek.
It was rather evident at their discontent mutters that Greeks were rather ill-perceived among the Roman of godly descent – but since it was their very own gods that were proclaiming that they weren't enemies after all, they were trying their best not to let their animosity show. Of course, it wasn't very successful in front of gods, Mars pointing out as much in a voice much less boisterous and far more logical than his Greek counterpart.
"You aren't going to become friend with the Greeks in an instant, but make no mistake…" the Roman flashed into his Greek form with a flare of power that stunned the mortals assembled "They are as much our children as you are, and now that the conflict has been resolved." the power flared down, and he smoothly turned back into Mars "We'll take just as badly to you harming them as we'd take to them harming you. You may not see us, we always keep an eye, both on them and you…" the smile, bloodthirsty, was more that of Ares than Mars, Adra mused "And I'll personally make any offender wish they'd died by the time I'm done with them."
Pluto smirked with dark amusement "Punishment can be given in death too, nephew."
After the rather heavy-handed threats, the gods had eased back their aura, proclaiming a celebration here too.
The feast had been a good move, as Romans shared with Greeks their love of a good banquet – and by the time they finally arrived back home for the Yule celebrations, the trio of questers had spent a few hours mingling with the Romans, who were rather curious.
About Jason, of course, who'd not only been claimed by his father but had also earned his qualification for any Legion once he came for his training; but also about Annabeth, which seemed rather like a strange aberration to them.
A legacy of Apollo had tried to stir trouble as soon as the gods had left to let the mortals enjoy the celebrations. The god of prophecy himself had appeared, pointing that all old prophecies were moot, which any competent descendant of his should realize, that Athena never broke her vow, and that you had to be really dumb to go against the gods less than an hour after they'd warned not to do it.
Needless to say, the not quite ten year old, who was slated for the Legion the next year, had suddenly seen his career opportunities drastically reduced as anyone who'd been thinking about granting him a recommendation letter quite firmly decided against it after this episode.
Once the fact that Athena hadn't in fact broken her vow was cleared up, as was the fact that the prophecy saying any children of her would bring trouble to the Camp, people had become quite curious about the leader of the quest that had been important enough to cause all twelve Olympians to appear in front of them.
Adra, needless to say, had aroused her own share of curiosity, having been introduced as an emissary of both Pluto and Hades and wearing a quite clearly foreign outfit. There was also a good dose of fear and mistrust given her evident ties with death, but none dared to act on it so soon after young Octavian had all but doomed his career in the Legion.
They had retold the tale of their quest multiple times during the feast, Jason skillfully arousing interest in Mithras – the Romans rather understandably finding it more palatable to focus on the god and his faithfuls, who'd held true to their word and kept to their duty for so long, rather than on the rather dismal act of trapping Arachne under false pretense.
Meeting a Greek had rather helped the Romans to start getting over the mistrust – even if of course, it wouldn't be done in a day.
¤.¤.¤
"We should probably organize some kind of exchange between the camp," Annabeth had mused while talking with one of the senator – the one who'd received Adra the first time she'd come around "there's isn't as much animosity at Camp Half Blood, but they are curious too." she explained "And now that we know about each other, there's no reason we shouldn't learn more about each other, we are after all family of a sort."
"You are taking this rather easily." the senator, who had introduced herself as Maelia Laurentia, pointed out with some curiosity in her tone
"Well, my older cousin is a son of Frey." she explained easily
Maelia, and those close enough to have heard her spent a few seconds mulling over the name before one boy, the tattoo on his arm indicating he was serving his fourth yaer in the Legion, realized "That's the norse god of summer! Do you mean to say…"
"That other gods are real?" Annabeth shrugged, not really seeing the point in hiding it – now that the Romans knew about the Greeks, they were eventually going to realize there were others gods around in her opinion "Well yes, of course."
"They aren't quite as active as the Greek-Roman pantheon," Jason agreed from a bit further away "But there are all kind of gods around the world." a shrug "As long as you show proper respect, they don't really mind that you pray to someone else." Jason smiled "I've been praying to Artemis as well as my father since I was a child after all."
Annabeth nodded along – while she mainly prayed to her own mother, she also had taken to pray to the Celt gods during the yearly wixen celebration, like many witches and wizards did. She may not have magic, she still was thankful for the charm that kept her hidden from monsters, and as such had become rather interested in their culture, spending quite a few trips in the magical district at home.
Camp Jupiter was still stewing over the numerous revelations of the day by the time the trio headed back home thanks to Adra's shadows – tired, yet looking forward to spend Yule with their family.
Once more, the tale of their adventures were retold, Remus confirming he'd managed to find a loophole to the half-blood's contract – that had been written for a mortal, and not an immortal. As such, when Geryon came from Tartarus, he would be very surprised to realize all his possession had been seized to make up for the centuries of unpaid labor. The Triple G Ranch was now under new management – and needless to say the beasts there would be all the better for it.
¤.¤.¤
Because it was the calmest of the three houses, Pyxis had found a room in his and Adra's home for Arachne, who while thankful to be free was still a bit overwhelmed by the number of people milling around.
The woman had been rather stunned to see how the hose-elves had managed to adapt the room to her needs in but a few minutes, and by now she was enjoying the large doors that opened on the Japanese garden, and working on her first knitting work.
From time to time, her keen ears picked on the laughter coming from the Rookery – and it put a smile on her lips as she focused on recreating her first sun-rise in centuries.
Hours went by like this, and it was twilight by the time she stretched languidly and stepped back from her tapestry.
"My daughter was right," a voice she hadn't heard in a very, very long time echoed "you've grown far better than me at your craft."
Arachne's eyes widened at the unexpected admission, as she realized that a woman was in the garden, elegantly seated on one of the large boulders. That she shouldn't be able to she her work from this angle didn't really matter – this was, after all, a goddess.
Athena's eyes were as startlingly grey and intense as ever, she still wore the same chton she used to wear, and precious few jewels, light brown hair reasonably braided on a shoulder. But beyond the familiar, frighteningly intelligent grey stare, there was something different – tiredness, Arachne realized with surprise.
Not simply the weariness of someone after a long day, more of the bone-deep feeling of exhaustion tied to trying to hold on something without seeing any end to it.
Somehow, she felt, this goddess must have spent more time refining her warring strategies than her weaving patterns she so much enjoyed.
Arachne couldn't get herself to bow – but the burning hatred that had already started to cool down when the trio of half-blood had decided to save her rather than fight her was getting colder by the second.
Athena wasn't surprised to see her refuse to bow.
"We were tied back then, and it greatly annoyed me, that you who so lacked respect for the gods could be so skilled at a craft I had invented."
Oh.
Put like this.
Arachne had always been of the opinion that the gods had an over-inflated sense of pride – and she stood by it. But still, she could see how annoying it must have been for the grey-eyed goddess to see someone demean her and use her art in the same breath.
"Still, as disrespectful as you were, I never intended for your life to become so dire that you found death to be better. You were annoying, but you had real skill, not simply talent, but the drive and inventiveness to improve yourself…"
Once more, Annabeth had been right – trust the daughter of Wisdom to manage so much with simple guesswork!
"So I remade you in a beast spirit, so that you may improve yourself, and eventually thread the ground with your own two legs again."
Arachne's eyes widened.
She remembered the first decades, stuck as a tiny creature – yet still able to weave.
So small and helpless, she truly had felt it was a curse that the goddess had inflicted on her, and only spite had let her survive. It was the Romans wizards that had given her this half-human, half-monster form…
But Arachne was from the old times.
When gods regularly did act of terror and wonder among mortals, and monsters freely roamed the lands. Arachne – knew the difference between a monster and a spirit.
And so, she realized what the simple sentence meant – she had never been meant to be stuck in this grotesque appearance anymore than she had been meant to be stuck underground!
The centuries of spite- she knew well now that they had been aimed at the wrong target – and that the one who really were the source of all her woes were long dead.
It was tempting to trade hating Athena with hating the Romans – but even this would be pointless, as Jason was proof enough that all Romans weren't at fault, and it really was as she had told the children, she was tired of hating.
"Take care of this new life." Athena concluded with a small smile "We Greeks and Romans wont bother you anymore."
This – was a pardon for all the children she'd killed, Arachne realized – freedom from the interference of the Greeks and the Romans gods.
Arachne felt the sting of disappointment.
She had been meant to be a spirit.
To find back her human form by herself – because Athena had always valued people that put efforts in improving themselves - and take her place as one of the goddess' trusted.
And now – now centuries of misunderstanding, resentment and meddling had messed with it.
Arachne was of the old world.
It hurt to realize what could have been.
The emaciated woman didn't know how to put all this in words, especially with a goddess she'd been at odds with for so long – but she wasn't given the time to, as Athena was already gone.
"It's nearly dinner time," a young voice – Luna, she remembered "will you join us for the celebration?"
"Celebration?"
"It's Yule today. The day of rebirth." the young witch smiled, reaching a hand toward her "A perfect day to start a new life, right?"
Arachne smiled, and took her hand, letting herself be led toward the Rookery and it's patchwork of wixen and half-bloods.
She hadn't know, for all this time -but now that she did…
Arachne smiled, and as the Yule Log was burning and everyone praying for the new year, she vowed – to herself and Athena.
Not pray -this wasn't something she thought she'd be ready to do anytime soon.
But a vow, this she could do.
One day, she'd regain her legs, master the change between woman and spider as she had been meant to do – and then, she'd be able to apologize to the goddess just like she'd done.
¤.¤.¤
The holidays had come to an end rather quickly after that, and soon Adra, Sirius, Leifr and of course Hermione were back to Hogwarts.
The end of the school year had been rather calm compared to those first hectic months – or rather as calm could be with Fred, George and Leifr causing chaos by their simple presence.
Adra did drop by Camp Half Blood a few times during the week-ends to hunt with Denys, and thanks to that was kept appraised of how the revelation of the Greeks and Romans had gone among both pantheons.
The gods themselves could now change at will between their two aspects – but overall, what had been split-personalities had healed, and they were now more of a blend between their two aspects, simply having a better hold on some of their powers in one form rather than the other.
Denys himself explained that he was now far better over the insanity and festive aspect of his power in his Greek form, while the Roman one had a better handle on the more lascivious parts of celebrations, but also a stronger affinity for freedom and wildness.
All the gods that had been waiting for Zeus to finally relent on the old laws were more than happy to be finally able to interact with their children – and while some did go overboard, the first punishment of Zeus on said godly parent, preventing him to see his child for a year, had worked well enough that there hadn't been to follow his example.
On the other hand – being given more attention from their godly parent was doing wonders for the half-blood, many more having been claimed, and more importantly, the children finally settling down better now than going on quests wasn't the only hope to one day see them.
Zeus had been rather stunned to realize this – and Hera was rather smug, as it demonstrated that her own domain of family was far more important than their leader had ever realized.
They had also taken to drop by a bit more often among the Romans, that had grown, they'd realized, far too used to live without their input.
Which was all well and all for the people that didn't remember about them – but New Rome was full of people that descended from them, prayed to them, yet had grown distinctively unused to head their direct words.
On a side note – Jason had been a good enough tale-taller than within a few months, Mithras had gathered quite a few followers. While he wasn't the powerhouse he used to be, the god had regained both colors and tangibility, and wasn't in danger of fading anymore.
Among the half-bloods themselves, the cultural shock between Camp Half Blood and Camp Jupiter had been rather resounding, but between the senators, Maelia Laurentia spear-heading the project, and Chiron's hard-work, things were put in place for each camp to get to know each other.
To the Romans, Camp Half Blood seemed highly unorganized and frivolous – but with time, and a few spars, they soon realized that the Greeks also produced more specialized, but highly skilled warriors.
A son of Mars would win a battle– but a son of Ares would win the fight.
Put the two of them together... And the whole war would be won.
For the Geek, they were rather put off by the very militaristic organization of the Legion, and obeying centralized power didn't come as easily them – but it was easy to realize that it was also the fact that they were far more organized that allowed the Romans to build New Rome, and were highly impressed with the idea of living in a city where they wouldn't have to hide who they were or their abilities.
It would take time – but both sides were quick to realize they had things to learn from each others.
By the time summer time came around, an exchange program had been put together – with a contubernium of ten legionaries coming from Camp Jupiter to spend a month at Camp Half-blood while ten Greek half-bloods would go to the legion.
This first exchange, they all knew, would probably be rough as there still many things each Camp didn't know about the other – so Chiron had been quite clear on the fact that he'd only sent older half-bloods who had passed the eligibility test for quests. On New Rome's side, a contubernium had volunteered itself – and while it was of the least popular cohort, it was still a good start as any.
¤.¤.¤
Adra herself had of course taken advantage of the summer vacation to drop by the Kane's house, Sirius in tow.
Ruby Kane was faring better than during the winter holidays, but the woman had nearly incinerated her own life-force, so it was only natural that it took so long for her to heal.
It had taken months for her to wake up – and she had been still fragile enough that her son had waited before giving her about the same lecture as he'd given his parents: they had been Stupid, and Stupid got people killed.
Of course, the speech had been a bit more argumentative – Carter pointing out numerous time that knowing that people had been sent to save the world, then proceeding to not use those people's advice wasn't very logical, that saving Bast had been, while very kind, also dangerous enough that they shouldn't have tried it with only the two of them, and so on…
Adra had cheerfully let the boy vent his frustration, understanding all too well how terrifying it was to loose your parents, god or not.
As for Bast herself, while it was harder to keep on a human form with only Carter, Zyra and Saddie around, she had found a cat to possess, and Saddie, proving once more the kind of genius she was when it came to Egyptian magic, had managed to craft a talisman that left the goddess talk despite her feline form.
Still, it was rather clear to Adra and all the other gods of the family that the goddess, while still quite weakened, was healing day after day – but millennia of uninterrupted fighting had taken such a toll that a mere year was far from enough to completely heal her, just like Leifr himself had needed years to heal physically and mentally from his own ordeal.
"So… now that we know it's possible to free the gods, what's the next step?" Carter had finally wondered once his worry-fueled recrimination against his parents had finally calmed down
"Free the rest of course." Zya dead-panned with dry-wits rather surprising for a six year old
"Of course but what I mean is that the Per Ankh isn't going to just let us do as we please." her not-twin shrugged "I mean, holding up the illusion than mom was awake and fine worked this time around, but they immediately suspected us last time, so doing something as flashy again without any preparations would be unwise."
"Well, now that we've got the basis of how to free the gods, why not refine the method before trying again?" Sirius mused from the corner of the room where he was amicably talking with Bast "There's got to be a way to make things more discreet." he shrugged "I mean, even if there aren't wards in Egyptians magic, I'm sure could adapt some wixen magic or something to emulate a notice-me-not ward or something similar…"
Ruby and Julius shared a look.
Just like Carter had said, they had nearly been caught when the House of Life had decided to investigate the nearly fatal occurrence at the Cleopatra needle – and he held no doubt that had the sheh sent to investigate thought that they were involved, the punishment would have been death.
And even knowing that Carter was a god didn't change the fact that he was first and foremost their child, just like Zya and Saddie – and no child wanted to loose their parents.
It was maybe because he remembered how it felt to lose his family from his previous lifes – that the literal god among their children was also the one that had seemed the most afraid of loosing them…
So they wouldn't stop their crusade – quite the contrary – but they wouldn't be stupid about it anymore – because while the fate of the world was at stake, they also had children to live for.
"Freeing the gods one by one would no doubt work better." Julius mused "Less magic needed, probably a less important anchoring point too… And less risky too if we do manage to create something to hide the magic..."
"You should work with my brother," Adra said "We had to craft a ward at the Lotus- Eater lair so brother has become rather skilled at blending wix magic with godly powers, even if it wasn't Egyptian ones…"
Carter laughed "I can't believe you're making him work during his vacations!"
"Well he says he's come for vacation," Adra smiled fondly "but it was more out of worry, wasn't it?"
"Family is important." Anubis pointed out, knowing his adoptive father well enough by now that he realized better than most just how kind Pyxis, or rather Death, really was despite his seemingly cold character "And with a little sister like you, even an immortal would gain white hairs."
Adra's protest was drowned by Carter's own laughter, the young boy patting amicably the Egyptian god "You get it too don't you!"
"I hadn't realized that even when it wasn't evil chaos could be so…. Chaotic." the boy mused "And that's with having ties with it!"
Anubis' aversion to his own powers and ties to chaos had been among the first thing Adra had shattered back when she'd all but kidnapped him – but the young god still remembered the millennia spent being afraid of himself. Each time he saw those powers used for the good of the world around him, or even simply to bring a bit more entertainment, he felt himself healing a bit more.
It had taken years – before he'd even dared touch his own gift enough that he'd realized he had already been using it all along, when making use of his rather impressive talent in illusions-weaving.
¤.¤.¤
All in all, even if it had ups and downs, it had been a rather good summer, and that despite the fact that Lockhart seemed to be just a much of an over-inflated annoyance in this world than in her first one…
Dobby had made an appearance, the house-elf having come to warn the Girl-who-Lived of the dangers that would soon plague Hogwarts. Adra had been surprised – both because she hadn't been sure the house-elf would come, given that this Voldemort hadn't split his soul, and because the little being had only needed one glance at her before becoming even more deferential, clearly able to feel that she was much more than the half-blood wixen believed her to be.
She hadn't realized it, most house-elves she'd encountered up until then having been naturally deferential, yet less eccentric that the clearly mistreated Malfoy servant. Dobby had left, clearly hopeful for the future now that an Old One was there to save them – and Adra had mentally promised herself to look in the situation of the kindhearted, albeit strange, house-elf.
Then Luke caught up with her during one of her hunting sessions with Denys, looking rather somber.
"I'm having dreams." he explained rather bluntly, before correcting himself "I mean not simply demi-gods dreams… Or maybe more demi-gods dreams than usual?" he wondered, clearly not quite sure himself about it
He sat on large log with a weary sigh, rather out of character for the usually rather cheerful cabin leader. He had bags under his eyes, Adra noted, and looked more tired than usual.
"I'm hearing a voice calling to me."
She winced.
Voices – were no better in the godly world than in the wixen or mortal one.
"It's trying to make me angry again." he admitted "And even though I know I'm not angry anymore, I feel this unnatural resentment growing against father and I hate it!"
There was real fear in his eyes as he said "I've seen what madness is with my mother, and I don't want to lose myself to it and hurt those I care about! But it comes again and again in my sleep, and I don't know how long I'll be able to keep it together..."
Denys and Adra shared a glance, and it was the Greek that let his aura flare for a moment.
Luke shuddered under the alien feeling – as if suddenly colors could talk, and the world was tilting upside down. The memories of his dreams rushed to the front of his mind – and as suddenly as all had changed, the world righted itself, and his dreams were pushed back once more.
"Well, you're not mad yet." Denys announced "But there is the touch of a foreign power in your mind." he eyed the boy with something that could nearly be respect "You've held on well, little hero. Many would have already been swayed by this much meddling." he turned toward Adra, worry in his eyes "I'm reporting this to Olympus, this reeks of Tartarus." a shrug "I hope it's only a false alarm, but with all the propheties pertaining to the end of the millenium going around..."
Luke's eyes widened as the god confirmed what he had hoped wasn't true.
With flash of light, only the demi-god and the young goddess were left in the meadow. Placing a reassuring hand on the taller than her teens, Adra smiled.
"You managed to come to us despite the pressure on your mind." a smile "And now, I'm afraid you have countless hours of meditation ahead of you."
There was a bit of dismay in Luke's eyes at this – but then, the leaves moved nearby, and a familiar silhouette dropped from a nearby tree. Adra smiled in greetings at Thalia, having of course felt the girl spying on them but knowing it was only out of worry for her oldest friend…
"You should have told me what was going on."the head-strong girl remonstrated Luke, with a punch – not too harsh, yet not quite gentle
"It was nearly impossible for him." Adra corrected gently, having felt about the same as Dionysus had "The one meddling with his mind was trying to isolate him, and managing to ask for help really took out a lot of mental strength."
Indeed, the emotions were fluctuating wildly on the face of Hermes' son, proving quite visibly that there was still some not quite right with him…
Thalia sat by Luke's side, leaning against him in silent support and asked "So… What are we doing?"
"Right now? Working on making Luke's mind his own." Adra answered "Denys is going to warn his father about the stirring of grand-daddy, but I'm still going to warn Hades about it too." she explained "But right now, you don't have to worry about that."
The unimpressed look both teenagers sent her way did wonder to convince her they would be worrying anyway so she pointed out "Train. Train to be ready when the time comes to go to war. That's what you can do for now." the two cabin leaders nodded seriously, understanding their friend wouldn't be budging on this
"I'm going to give you mental exercises to work on," Adra forged on "but since you're not a wixen, it's going to be hard." she warned "But we're all going to be around to help and remind you that whatever this bastard is trying to make you believe, it's wrong."
"Isn't there any magic or godly powers that can help?" Thalia couldn't help but ask
"Occlumency is the magical art of protecting one's mind." Adra explained "And I'm going to have Xeno teach Luke the basics as soon as possible, but as Luke isn't magical, he won't be able to learn much of it. We'll be looking through runes and rituals too, to see if we can find something to help… as for holy powers."a shrug "None of us in the clan are really geared toward healing, especially not the mind."
As summer came to an end, the clan of Lovegood, Lupin and Black had all become privy to Luke's trouble of the godly kind, and everyone was trying to help in their own way – be it by offering more training when it came to Remus, that couldn't help with the mind arts as he had a natural protection thanks to the wolf, or by helping with meditation like Xenophilius and Leto or by searching for any runes that could help with Pandora and Pyxis.
In Olympus, Zeus had taken his son' words with a grain of salt. It wasn't the first time the Titans had stirred over the centuries after all, so while it was too bad for the young half-blood he didn't think there was cause to panic just yet. Still – while the leader of Olympus was slow to change his way, he wasn't stupid either and remembered too that all current prophesies were telling of trials to come with the turning of the decade. As such, he did call his council, warning the other Olympians to keep an eye out on anything suspicious.
Luke and Thalia were antsy – but there really wasn't much more to do for now, something that went in direct opposition with their instincts.
And finally – September came around once more, and soon, Adra was heading back toward Hogwarts, the demi-gods and the rest of the clan promising to keep her appraised about the situation via Chaos Game.
ADRASTEIA LV 46 (12 YO)
BODY
Agility 16(38)
Strenght 11(23)
Endurance 12(15)
SPIRIT
Intelligence 11(43)
Wisdom 17(28)
Fortitude 11(31)
HEART
Empathy 12(17)
Perception 11(33)
Sociability 15(25)
LUCK 14(31)
PERK ACQUIRED (67PP spend, 15PP available)
Black First Rite (1PP): grants Easy Black Magic Potency (+10 to Easy Spells of Battle Magic, War Magic and Curse)
Moon First Rite (1 PP): unlocks Light Battle Aura (+10 to all damages)
Potter First Rite (1 PP): unlocks Sensing Skill up to 25 SP
Ravenclaw First Rite (1 PP): unlocks +10 to easy memory tests and +5 to Mentamancy Skill
Moon Aura (2PP): unlocks a battle aura that grants +10% to all damages when active, and drains 25 MP per minute active
Khonsou'Small Favor (2PP): grants Easy Shielding Magic Potency (+10 damages parried by Easy shield spells)
Thot's Small Favor (2PP): grants Easy Healing Magic Potency (+10 healing done by Easy spells of all Healing Schools)
Black Curse Magic Understanding (3PP): grants +10 to curse
Lovegood Divination Magic Understanding (3PP): grants +10 to divination
Moon Strategy Understanding (3PP): grants +10 to strategy
Peverell Healing Understanding (3PP): grants +10 to healing
Potter Transfiguration Understanding (3PP): grants +10 to transfiguration
Ravenclaw Rune Understanding (3PP): grants +10 to rune
Black Magical Potency (4PP): Grants +10% to MP
Lovegood Light Magic Seeing Ability (4PP): unlocks magic seeing skill up to 25
Moon Blood-stealing Aura (4PP): the Moon aura now allows the user to get back your Blood Skill % of HP per attack
Peverell Reiki Potency (4PP): grants +10% to RP
Potter Reiki Potency (4PP): grants +10% to RP
Black Heir (free): grants +5% MP, one free bloodline talent to be chosen (All Regen rate +5%)
Moon Heir (free): grants +10% KP, one free bloodline talent to be chosen (Atavism)
Peverell Heir (free): grants +5% RP, one free bloodline talent to be chosen (HP +10%)
Potter Heir (free): grants +5% MP, one free bloodline talent to be chosen (RP +10%)
Jack of All Trade (5 PP): +1 SP per level
Natural Genius (2 PP): double book learning rate (locks Hard Work Genius Perk)
A Father's Strength (5 PP):+5 to all Communication
Blood of the Pharao (5PP): unlocks all Egyptian Magics
Cyclop's Skin (2PP): +5 to Physical and Elemental Resistance
Slytherin Member (free): +2 WIS, access to the Slytherin Students Rooms
Gryffindor Honorary Member (free): +2 SOC, access to the Gryffindor Students Rooms
Ravenclaw Honorary Member (free): +2 INT, access to the Ravenclaw Students Rooms
Hufflepuff Honorary Member (free): +2 EMP, access to the Hufflepuff Students Rooms
FIRST PATH - Mind(+10 and RP, +5 to SPIRIT MC, +10 to Magic Skills)