Dear 'mom',
Ariadne was feeling better than she had in a long time. Ever since she had been released from Olympus and her supervised visits had ceased, she felt at peace. A part of her wanted to stay on Olympus where problems didn't touch her. Curled into the embraces of Apollon or Hermes… listening to Aphrodite as she spoke of genuine love stories that didn't end in tragedy… even her Uncle Zeus had allowed her to sit in as he spoke with the sky council.
I'm not bitter anymore.
She walked around Castellan with a small smile on her face. The demigods that stayed there now were chasing after one another. Chris was holding one of his classes for pranking that were really just teaching the kids how to make traps.
Travis and Connor were with Rachel as they reconstructed the boys' stores pamphlets. Katie and Annabeth were weaving together flower crowns for the kids around them.
I'm just sorry. I'm sorry that you have no right to be proud of me.
Will and Clarisse were in the training area as she helped the boy get better at his archery. He was doing way better from the tutelage of his father and aunt. And when he wasn't working on his archery, he worked on his sword fighting. In exchange for the help, Clarisse requested more healing techniques.
Nico was walking around with his stepmother and his birth mother's ghost. The two had bonded over their shared love for Nico and Maria had just about fallen over herself to learn gardening techniques from the goddess of springtime herself.
I'm sorry that I let you hurt me this badly.
Percy was walking with Krokus as they talked about the small uprisings within the sea. It was how they knew that things were continuing down the same paths. There were a lot of territory battles going on. The two brothers had been fighting for peace at sea.
I'm sorry that I had faith in you.
Helen and Silena were hiding away in the latter's storefronts. Silena continued Deadly Fashion while Helen took over Starfish . Silena had been delighted to start working with more modern styles while managing to keep them traditional.
They had opened a store front that connected with Camp Half Blood to give the kids more options for camp clothing. Their cloths also served as a form of armor seeing as the thread they used had been made from celestial bronze.
I'm sorry that I wasn't good enough for you.
Ariadne walked past her glass tank. A few naiads were swimming through it smiling as they waved at the demigoddess. Schools of fishes swam by as starfish stuck to the sides. Clams showed off their pearls while squids let out their ink.
I look back on the times that we shared together and I don't get sad anymore.
Thalia and the hunters were sleeping soundly as they rested. Artemis had dropped them off the day before. She had a family day planned with Leto, Apollon, and Hermes then she was taking the girls to fucking australia to monster hunt tomorrow.
Those brave souls. Ariadne wasn't even allowed on that side of the ocean without her father, stepmother, brothers, and fifty guards.
I know that there were people in my life that took your spot.
Maia and Leto had stopped by two days ago and helped her redecorate her room. When Amphitrite and Aphrodite heard the news, they appeared to help also. Her room looked like an underwater cave. Small clear pipes ran through the walls to meet in the middle like a waterfall. They were filled with waters of the underworld and the seven seas. She was able to clean her weapons more easily and thoroughly.
Her wardrobe was covered by hanging seaweed. Maia had woven her a rug made from sea silk. Leto and Aphrodite had gone wild on her vanity table.
Amphitrite had shown off the crown that Persephone helped the royal court prepare. It was irritably similar to the crown that the Ice Princess wore in Sharkboy and Lavagirl, but it was also very beautiful and brought out the green in her ocean blue eyes so she couldn't complain too much.
But I want to thank you also.
Beryl Grace was still very much an alcoholic. How she kept getting out of Castellan no one really knew. But they had stopped serving her liquor ages ago. Even her prayers to Dionysus went unanswered.
Ariadne had the sneaking suspicion that Hera was granting the woman's wishes in hopes that she got alcohol poisoning.
Thank you for teaching me that no matter how bad I want someone in my life, it doesn't always happen.
Apollon had been the most helpful of them all. If she was being honest, it made her feelings more genuine for him. Not that she didn't love him before, but now… now she allowed herself to fall in love without hatred clouding her sights.
It felt different for him to see the ugly side of her. Not the messy hair, unwashed face kind of ugly. The full breakdown where she lost herself to the emotions that welled inside of her. Because she had raged worse than she ever did the first go round. She raged and cursed and rained general hell in response to being locked away in a golden cage.
She felt as small as a river, but he treated her as if she was as grand as the ocean. When her scars made her feel like lumps on the moon, he treated them as if they were stars in the night sky.
He helped her break a part and stood to the side with a helpful hand as she pieced herself back again. He let her grow into herself. Helping her only when she got lost in her head.
To him, she was proof that broken things could be beautiful.
["Who you are becoming, mi amour," he whispered to her as the two settled in to watch the muses performance. Placing a kiss to the side of her head, he finished, "Is more important than who you've been."]
It was enough to make her fall in love all again.
[She was still so scared though because he could crush her heart so easily and there was no reason for him not to.]
Sincerely, ''Your Daughter'.
Her father treated her and Percy as if they were kids. And sure, in comparison to his age, they were kids. But he acted as if they were born only five years ago.
And she loved it.
He took them to baseball games. He took them to the movies. Once Rhode, Benny, and Kym had shifted down to her physical age, and he had a tea party with them. He let them plan sleepovers. He snuck the four of them into mortal schools for father daughter dances.
He taught how to use their powers more efficiently and fully immersed them into the royal court. Percy always complained about his princely duties, but they all knew he was happy to be so involved with their realm.
Ariadne knew he was excited to learn about the kingdom in particular. The first time they stumbled across Camp Fish-blood; she was sure that he would've caused a quake from how excited he was. Despite his near fluency in amphritian, the other still struggled over the official name of the camp. But he had been delighted to take the classes they offered anyway.
[And Ariadne was only biding her time to get that brownie recipe.]
And to my unbiological mothers,
May Castellan doted on the children around her. Luke and Thalia showed that their friendship would survive in time and death as they took one look at each other and decided to be partners in crime.
[Katie wondered if this version of her cousin would grow to be a huntress. Most of the hunters in the know only did not complain because the boy worshipped the ground that the girl walked on. And that he actively cheered the hunters on whenever they had archery competitions. Though it could also be because he was a child and they didn't really have problems with children.]
You didn't have to be there for me
Travis wasn't sure how to explain how angry they were. Beryl had taken Jason and disappeared. They searched high and low for him and the only condolence they received was that he wasn't dead.
"It's not safe for you all to know," Zeus had tried to soothe them. Apollon had grimaced when Ariadne had turned her bambi like eyes on him, "You will meet again. I am sure, but I cannot tell you more. I'm sorry."
They noticed the pained glances the gods shared. They noticed the irritable glares they gave Athena. Athena, who didn't even notice the stares as she stared blankly at her daughter.
No one had forgiven Beryl. She had been put under close watch in retaliation. And while the hunters knew of the reason though refused to tell Thalia… they refused to speak to the woman in solitary. At least she cleaned up her act and was writing to the muses to make kid appropriate shows.
You didn't have to give me advice when I was lost.
Sally Jackson was pregnant, but she wasn't pregnant with twins.
Capheira, Artemis, Apollon, and Leto had been at her side immediately. They need not to confirm it as the ocean's offspring had already known.
(Amphitrite stood at the twins' giving them the strength they didn't know they lost. To bear the weight of the prophecy all on his own? But they were changing the future. Would their actions make way for Thalia or Nico or Bianca or Katie?)
"You do not belong." "You were not meant to be."
Sally Jackson was pregnant with a son.
And Ariadne wasn't as bothered by that as she thought she would be.
To comfort me when I was nervous
When Ariadne was cleared to go back down to earth, she was almost sick with nerves and anxiety. In fact it was so bad that she ended up staying for another month.
The second go round, Amphitrite had come to her that morning. She had run the girl a bath to let her soak. Maia had fixed her a huge meal of her favored foods. Aphrodite had carefully brushed her hair which had grown to her shoulders. Leto read to her one of Apollon's poems.
They dressed her in clothing that made her feel as if she was walking on clouds. That made her feel as if she was someone of importance. She couldn't even feel bad about the muscle that she lost from how beautiful she felt.
Maia gave her a hair clamp that Hermes made for her himself while Leto placed the bracelet that was made from Apollon's hair, bow string, and his very essence onto her wrist.
I don't know where I would be without your guidance.
[Percy and Ariadne stared at the sheep walking around Castellan. The others probably thought it was their doing as it was in the shape of a storm cloud. But for all their talent… they weren't that talented. That was lightning and thunder wrapped into the wool of the sheep.
They followed after it watching as it made its way towards Thalia and Luke. The twins' furrowed their brow. Thalia had been crying?
The child perks up, throwing her arms around the goat in happiness, "Amaltheia." They figured it was just some weird pet guardian thing of Uncle Zeus so they left it alone.
(They should have not left it alone.)]
Thank you for loving me as your own.
Amphitrite held the twins... held Krokus... tightly in her arms and sung the song of the sea to them. She doted on them as if they were her own children.
(Percy had always felt guilty inside because he wish his mother could hear it, the sea was his song. And for a moment, just for a moment, he belonged.)
Your guppy, Ari.
Ariadne had awakened that morning differently. Percy could see that clearly. There was something about her. She was glowing.
Seeing the smile on her face... it made the heaviness that lingered in Percy's heart fade away. The way she moved was as if nothing could no longer bother her. Weight had been lifted off his sister and he couldn't have been more proud.
It was as if she was done trying to figure out who was with her, against her, or walking a fine line. She was done dealing with things that didn't bring her peace.
Dear younger me,
Sally Jackson's pregnancy went a lot different than it did the first go round. More people stepped in to check in on her. She wasn't going through this pregnancy by herself. [Poseidon and Amphitrite would never allow for 'Smelly Gabe' to enter her life.]
When the council of Castellan alongside Apollon, Dionysus, and Aphrodite give the okay, Sally Jackson was brought to the city of Castellan. At one point in time, Ariadne may have felt insecure about not being identical to her brother. Sure, she knew fraternal twins existed but even they looked different from a distance.
But the moment that Sally Jackson had been brought before the council of Castellan. Percy welcomed her with a smile. She may not be the mother that raised him, but she was his mother still. He couldn't forgive her of her neglect to his sister, but he loved her still.
Ariadne looked at her uncaringly, eyes lingering on her protruding belly. The call of the sea was strong within the baby. She caught Travis' gaze. The two swallowed back laughs as Connor subtly shifted.
[After the battle of the battle of the labyrinth, Chiron had the Ares and Athena cabin teaching them hand signals for codes. It had been right before Ariadne went to help the war effort at sea. Ariadne had taken the lessons and twisted them for her convenience. She and her friends came up with their own hand signals so that they could talk without worrying about any other eavesdroppers.]
["Whoa, what if fetus Percy ate you in the womb," Connor questioned. Ariadne's nose twitching was the only sign that she was inwardly laughing, "Are you calling Percy a cannibal?" Travis' tapped his finger on his armrest, "Don't sea creatures eat other especially sharks and whales?" Clarisse stretched her legs out, "The circle of life." The entire group stiffened in their seats to keep from laughing aloud.]
I'm sorry for the pain that you have gone through.
Percy and Ariadne descended to the sea. There were skirmishes happening in the Artic seas. The noble families were staying in the region were arguing over territory. There fights were causing the ice to shift.
They were suppose to settle it peacefully except- Lord Helgi had hit his sword against the ice. The ice cracked. Percy, Krokus, and Ariadne jumped to the rescue. The ice continued to spread quicker than they could move.
Percy paused from where he was helping a pack of artic foxes. Ariadne had walked back to the main crack. Pushing Helgi out of the way, Ariadne's eyes started to flicker. She pressed her hands to the ice and pulled inwards.
["ARIADNE! LET GO! COME ON!" "ARIADNE YOU CANT HOLD THAT FOREVER!" "ARIADNE LET IT GO." "ARI, ITS GOING TO EXPLODE." "Call upon this charm, and I will guide you home."}
Krokus and Percy shared a look before bending down to the ice also. They could immediately felt a drain on their bodies. Ariadne wasn't just pulling the ice back together. She was sealing the cracks within it. Percy could feel Krokus' gentle nudging as began to draw the line within the territories. There was no reason to argue then. Percy focused on making the neutral territory safe for the arctic animals to reside in.
By then time they finished, they were reminded that while they may be immortal... they still held mortal traits as few as they may be. Their noses were red and small shivers were running through their bodies.
Percy gave the lords the standard punishments for disruption of peace and then gave Lord Helgi had even harsher probation due to the endangerment of the animals. They left as quickly as they could. Once they arrived back to the castle, Ariadne had locked herself inside of the treasure room as she tried to calm herself from a small panic attack.
[They were worried for her. She shouldn't have to go through those alone, but Schmidt wouldn't let them near her. The hydra pup curled around her protectively with two heads that promised death.]
If our tears were lighter fluid then the world would be in flames
Hector pushed her to her limits. Fighting with her and giving her strength. A part of her truly believed that if he had been the one to kidnap her then she probably wouldn't have went so far in the aftermath.
He told her that she fought like she had something to prove and that he had fun beating the idea out of her.
Which was a lie. The two of them were tied for wins.
I'm sorry for not being enough for those around us
Ariadne smiled knowingly when she saw how often Connor and Krokus dined at Silena's Eatery. The two looked smitten with each other. In another life, Krokus would have fallen in love with Hermes before giving his heart to a beautiful nymph. He would've died from a broken heart.
And yet- she saved him from that horrible fate. She watched as he fell in love with Connor. And she watched as Connor fell just as fast. The two were turning into simps for one another. And she was happy to see it.
She'd always feel bad for not being able to return Connor's feelings, but- she was happy that he found his happiness.
I'm sorry for how much you endured on your own.
When Sally Jackson's went into labor, Ariadne had the misfortune pleasure of being the only one around. The demigoddess cursed with all the strength in her as she helped the woman to the room that they had set up for her. The ghastly directors that worked at Will's hospital flew around her as they prepped the delivery room. Ariadne stood before three different rainbows trying to get someone to help out.
Thankfully, Capheira, Artemis, Apollon, and Leto didn't take long to arrive. Apollon checked with her first to see if she was still okay with it all before turning to help with the birth. Her parents just as the baby's head came through. Her mother came to her side as her father kept his eyes locked onto his son.
I'm sorry for breaking and being weak.
Ariadne still had nightmares. In those cases, she snuck out of her room in the castle. She'd creep across the kingdom to return to the grove. She'd lie at the bottom of the cave pearl for the rest of the night. Sometimes, Percy knew before she did what was going on and he held her his arms and let her cry.
There was a strength even in weakness and while that wasn't something she fully believed in... she could somewhat understand the meaning.
We are not strong because we overcame it.
Nico no longer wanted to be the king of Castellan. He wanted to relax for awhile and just be the ghost king. They debated heavily between themselves of who would their next ruler or if they should just give up all pretense and continue as a ruling council.
We are strong because we are ourselves.
Ariadne had sat in front of her vanity for the longest time. She had tied her hair into their usual buns but she didn't feel any joy at the sight. She felt like she was a kid again pretending to be a grown up. When she let the hair fall back to her shoulders, she smiled lightly at the sight before turning away.
[In order to be free, we must learn to let go. Release the hurt. Release the fear. Refuse to entertain the old pain. -Mary Manin Morrissey]
I apologize for waiting on apologies we would never get.
It was as if she had realized that life was way too short to leave the key to her own happiness in someone else's hands. And though they were immortal now, it seemed it was time for her to live for herself. Percy saw her as she walked around the kingdom slowly searching for new things to find joy in. She hadn't even visited the training grounds.
He remembered finding her and Annabeth weaving together tapestries at one point. She worked inside of Silena's Eatery. She sang songs as she cleaned the hell pup pins. Nico had just about cried when she helped him tackle his paperwork.
Percy had saw her walk up to Sally and the younger version of himself with a mini sea horse plushie. The two women held a small but cordial conversation before Ariadne skipped away to her next mini adventure.
I apologize for not loving you as much as you deserved.
Some days she could be found sitting in her bathtub. Her eyes would locked onto something unseeing in the distance. Hermes or Apollon would be the ones at her side then whispering soothing words into her hair.
Clarisse and Silena appeared when they could not. Each of them rubbed at her hands, creams for arthritis or creams to ease aged old aches. The girls would sit and speak about their scars. They would trace over them and press kisses into each other's skin. Charged silence would linger between the three as they thought about an entirely different lifetime before betrayal tore them a apart.
I loved you then. I love you now. I love you and I will love you until the sea swallows the sun and if there's life after that, I love you then.
Ariadne took her seat as the new queen of Castellan. The crown made of bone and pomegranate sat on one side of her. A crown made of kelp and starfish sat atop her head. A cloak made of sea foam hung around her shoulders. Her family sat in the seats surrounding her. The gods smiled upon her.
She looked at her mothers who gave her smiles of encouragement. She looked at Hermes who shot her wink in amusement. She looked at her beloved, Apollon, who smiled at her with pride.
["You are in charge of your own destiny, Ariadne," he pressed his forehead against hers. She could see specks of gold in his blue eyes that spoke of stories untold. "Seek what sets your soul on fire."]
She turned back to her people. To her family.
"My first order of business as Queen is… effective immediately, I am retiring my sword."
With love,
Ariadne Jackson