The beginning of this chapter made me laugh in a horrible way when I realized every character here but Percy has mommy issues!

Thanks so much for all the support this has gotten so far, hope you continue to enjoy!

PJOPJOPJO

There was no may or may not about it, Thalia was internally screaming like a banshee. Annabeth had certainly never told her about The Fate's delivering this news to Percy! How in the name of Tartarus had he survived the Titan war with this hanging over his head? He was now destined to die, this is what was promised.

And yet...considering where they were...maybe fate could still be cheated. Posideon had a hand in his son being down here, and whatever these other children of the Gods were doing here so far, it wasn't doing them any harm. She would see her friend safely back to camp, she would not let her little sister Annabeth down and get these two back to each other. She took a carefully neutral breath and held out her hand for the book. "What do you say Perce? Want to keep going, or sick of hearing your own voice yet?"

He handed it over without protest while Magnus stretched his hands. Hearth waved him down though and promised Thalia was reading at the perfect angle for all, no surprise, he could read her lips fine. In fact, Hearth offered to try signing for him, letting him pick up on some more words.

Jason let out a gusting breath of disappointment and couldn't even crack a smile like Will did at the silly chapter title of Grover losing his pants, expectedly or not. Thalia seemed more agitated than ever and he was growing impatient, even frustrated Percy seemed to be relaxing into relearning his memories where as he was just as in the dark as when this started. Why was he down here?

"At least he didn't lose his pants on the bus, that could have been awkward," Will offered.

"I couldn't have blamed him if he did shit himself," Nico muttered.

"Sneaky," Alex approved.

"I wonder if he throws his pants at you in retaliation later," Magnus offered.

"How kind of you," Will muttered with the first distasteful look he'd given anything while stuck down here, and it wasn't directed at any of them. He actively tried not to think about his own.

Nico gave him an astounded look, he'd been starting to wonder if Will had an uncheerful bone in his body. Seeing that little grimace made him smile just a bit guiltily, but at least this guy was human, maybe being a child of the sun god meant more than just having a sunny disposition.

Magnus muttered something he hadn't even wanted Hearth to know about, but the ache of that felt more true than even Percy knew. At least Percy's mom was still alive.

Thalia scowled and muttered a few things about her own mother for a moment that wasn't pleasant for a single soul to hear, eyes flickering to this Jason and away once more before straightening herself and reading about Sally with warmth. The mother everyone deserved.

Jason was tracing his SPQUR tattoo with a distant mind. He had no feelings or memories whatsoever attached to the idea of a mother. If he strained himself enough he thought he at least should know something about his father, but aside from the headache he yet had a clue about any of this.

Nico made a watery scoff that almost passed for normal underwater. He wondered if his mother would still say the same, as much as she claimed to love Hades in his memories, given how things had ended.

Alex wished she had no memories of her 'mother' or father for that matter, maybe Percy should have been enjoying his ignorance of what he was in for while it lasted.

Hearthstone managed a stoic expression, just like always, giving nothing away. His mother had treated him like a secret, preferring him to be out of sight.

Percy had a sad smile on his face as he heard about this with new context. His mom had known about all of this, and still she'd always loved him as just her son. Not some weird freaky kid who seemed to have some really odd affinity with the water, not another burden of a kid with too many issues for any school to handle. Just Percy, her son. He longed to see her again almost as much as Annabeth now.

"You're not an easy teenager either, but if she hasn't changed her mind by now I like your odds," Thalia told him robustly, she seemed more determined to sound confident than she actually was, but Percy smiled all the same for how easy she made it look.

Thalia was glad Percy had given the book up now, as she had no idea what would happen to them if he destroyed it, but he looked as likely to breathe fire as any child of Posideon could manage. She had no idea what this guy had done to her friend, but she wasn't exactly holding onto that casualness as much anymore when she managed details.

'How is it I've met homeless guys with better shower routines?' Magnus asked in disgust.

'Standards,' Hearth rolled his eyes. Humans like this were one of the reasons he'd been so uneasy about coming to Midgard.

"No, no, that's a new torture Hades would indulge," Nico quietly promised Will.

"Don't look at me, I'm not going to be the one giving a pitch meeting," but Will smiled all the same he was still interacting at all.

"I hope Grover comes back very soon, so you can ask to borrow his pants and wrap them around this guy's throat," Alex sneered.

Thalia's face was scrunched up with automatic dislike just from Percy having a sense of hate for this guy, and yet it was already starting off worse than just some dislikeable mooch.

She now wished she could count down the pages until Sally met Paul and dumped this loser. "Had he ever actually hit you?" Thalia snapped in outrage.

"No," Percy said calmly enough, "but I always believed he would." The look 'Mrs. Dodd's' had given him now made sense to him, it was the same face Gabe had been giving him for years.

"Because it was obviously to much effort to get your lazy lump up to get him," Will muttered. At least their Godly parents gave vague reasons why they stayed away from their kids.

'That my mom had to smuggle me back at Christmas for this purpose,' Percy scowled.

"Probably to cover up Gabe's stench," Magnus said, and Percy didn't even deny it.

"I actually can't imagine you acting snooty," Thalia thumped him on the shoulder. "Oblivious, stubborn, but high- and- mighty has never been top of the list, which is a real credit to you given your status."

Percy told her thanks for the semi-compliment, though he had no clue what status she was talking about. Couldn't be being the child of a sea god, since obviously everyone here was a child of a god to be present. He rubbed at his necklace curiously again but didn't give it much thought, proving Thalia's very point as she smirked at how dismissive he apparently was of her slip and unhappily turned back to this mess. She hoped Grover came back any moment to escort Percy to camp away from this mess, even some monster getting a hold of his pants on the way.

"If he studies anything in there I'll eat this book," Jason rolled his eyes.

"I'd be willing to take that bet," Percy told him sincerely, "and it's my memories on the line!"

"Did I win anything?" Jason didn't exactly look thrilled this guy was useless in every aspect.

"The next chapter," Thalia tried to tell him with the same friendly grin she did the others, but it was so hard to look at him too long, he just reminded her so much of that toddler her mother had given away to Hera, as good as a death sentence.

Nico whistled. "Now I know you mean bad."

It was only because of this strange blond guy in the room Thalia kept bitterly thinking of Beryl Grace so much. In recent times she was much more fond of thinking about Artemis as her patron goddess as well as the best big sister one could ask for, almost as good as a stepmother in some ways. She read about Sally with that same warmth infused in her voice now, trying to carry on what this woman would want and not give Percy anything awful to focus on while she was present.

Percy was starting to feel a little overwhelmed, the burn tracing up his throat threatening to make him cry in this room full of strangers. That's not why he cleared his throat and forced himself not to though. His longing to see her again was now as prevalent as seeing Annabeth, a factual need he would make possible if he had to somehow bend the entire ocean to his will to let him back up, but to do that he had to find out what went so wrong to wind up down here. He would not go back and disappoint her again.

Magnus bit down on his lip to stop himself saying how grateful he was Sally hadn't called Percy her pumpkin too. He still found himself making it unconsciously, forming his left hand into a fist and flicking it with his right, much to Hearth's confusion. He remembered the day Magnus had asked him about that sign specifically, and put together now why on that particular day.

Nico sighed and repressed the urge to tell Percy about Paul. Not just because of Thalia's warning about not overwhelming him with stuff not to be remembered too soon, but also for the simple fact he wasn't sure how Percy would take to him. Percy might not remember all the wretched thing's he'd done in the past, but he didn't think playing nice now would make it better when he did, and really should work on that whole trying to get out of here thing before all that happened

"Compared to others you might meet," Will agreed with a pleasant enough smile that hid well Clarisse made Nancy look like an actual push over, not to mention her dad.

Thalia smiled for that interesting choice of words. Sally was a very special mortal.

"Better safe than sorry most likely," Alex scoffed. Percy should enjoy his parent's nicety while it lasted. She didn't want to hear about another parent disgracing their child once they found out about their real heritage, things would only get worse from there.

"How often did you go to a beach?" Thalia asked in surprise. Had Posideon somehow outlawed the entire ocean from making contact with his kid? It wasn't a huge stretch of the imagination, but still a surprise on her part he spent so much time around his natural domain and still had never had any suspicions.

"Every summer we could get away with," Percy said wistfully.

"I'm sure it's all in Vegas," Will muttered darkly. Nico gave an involuntary flinch at the mention of that city and Will gave him an apologetic frown on principle even if he didn't understand why, but Nico was still sitting on his seat ramrod straight. No longer on the edge of it, but not exactly relaxed either.

Alex's mouth was puckered up like she'd swallowed a lemon and Percy was clutching his sword-pen for the first time as if feeling truly murderous again for the first time he were in here at hearing his mother call him that. They all wished they could see through Sally's eyes just for a moment now to demand to know what she saw in this guy, and why she put up with it.

"Only a week? This Mantauke trip must have put you in a good mood," Jason said. Thalia bit back her lip to hide a smile, she'd been about to say the same.

Some people don't think they deserve better, Hearthstone kept to himself. He hadn't questioned what a parents love even properly was until Blitzen had shared stories of his dad, then Magnus with his mom.

"I'm sure he'll figure it out by the end of the weekend," Will said with such sincere cheerfulness, Nico had to stifle a laugh Gabe couldn't have detected the sarcasm for the rest of his life.

Thalia bit her lip uneasily, wondering just how much Sally did know. Was it just the bad weather that had her on edge? Surely Posideon hadn't been keeping in touch with her all this time, that would draw dangerous attention of the other gods. Yet maybe seeing through the Mist gave her just more perception than seeing monsters, maybe she could see the true danger awaiting Percy if ever she glanced towards the Statue of Liberty.

"I can't even imagine him making the trip down the stairs is worth the effort," Alex scowled, "that poor car's probably not even going to make it!"

Percy felt an extra blistering moment of hatred for him for some unknown reason...though he couldn't place why the insult should have felt familiar, let alone personal.

"Who's the God of seagulls? Asking for a friend?" Magnus asked.

"I can say with whatever amount of certainty I have," Percy told him while tapping his temple, "that one's never tried to kill me, or at least announced it was him doing it. I'll let you know if I find out though." He promised.

"A mortal who deserves it more than some monsters I've met," Thalia agreed with pride.

"Wow, live action of how powerful the Mist is," Alex frowned. She didn't at all like the idea of her view of the world being obscured, she liked it in all its messy shaped glory of the nine worlds.

"Does that work on all monsters?" Percy asked with a very pleased smile.

"Sadly not," Thalia shook her head, "the magic's too weak to be more than symbolic on anything more powerful than a dryad, and you don't meet many evil nature spirits. You just found a particularly good use for it," she congratulated. Annabeth might go a whole hour without calling him seaweed brain when she heard that.

"I'm guessing he never took Annabeth there," Nico muttered.

Que three collective laughs from Percy's friends, who gave them an exasperated look and the best defense he could. He'd believed in Santa Clause until a few years ago, he hadn't questioned his mom's precaution over this.

Magnus got a funny, faraway look on his face. If Percy was a son of a sea god, and his godly parent had met Sally by the ocean...were there any Norse gods who liked mountain hikes? He was tempted to ask Hearth, he knew his friend had been holding back on everything he knew before, but he'd just recently adjusted to being at the bottom of the ocean and this stuff being real at all. He'd never cared about who his dad was before, and he wasn't going to start now.

"Am I sensing a pattern?" Jason asked warmly.

"Great detective skills," Percy grinned, "She's funny that way, celebrating special occasions with blue food. I think it's her way of saying anything is possible."

"I didn't think it was possible for him to be stupider than I already thought," Will looked truly remorseful at this slipping IQ. "I shall correct this by shoving blueberries up his nose."

"And turning him into a pancake," Nico added. Will did not disagree, which made Nico question if it was possible to kill someone with blueberries. Had he read that somewhere once?*

"A fate I'd only wish upon my mother," Thalia muttered, but then they all shifted uneasily in place as she'd invoked those three old ladies again. Where was Grover, and how was he going to get to Mantuake to warn Percy about whatever was coming for him?

"Like what?" Magnus asked with interest.

"Let you steal her plotlines and characters?" Percy teased. "Nope, you'll have to wait until they're released," he said with absolute confidence.

Percy looked around this empty room with a sense of longing now. He wanted to ask why Posideon himself wouldn't have shown up to give the warning his life was being messed with, why employe some ocean Titan like Oceanus, but decided being unconscious from pain wouldn't help figure this out any faster.

"What's not to love there? All your missing is the blown up school bus," Alex nodded seriously.

Magnus frowned and muttered something about how he could blow up a school bus too, but Percy just shook his head in disagreement at what he seemed to think was sarcasm.

"Perhaps he did manage to visit you while she was asleep," Jason said, having a funny feeling it would even make more sense, but why would gods have any more reason to visit someone in their sleep? Regardless, a dream made more sense if he had to keep his distance.

"If the gods mettled in such mortal affairs, they wouldn't have heros at all," Thalia murmured the words Arteimus herself had answered when Thalia demanded why couldn't they save every innocent girl out there from their fate. To join the hunt was not the solution for every problem out there.

Percy already knew this not to be true even before Thalia shook her head in exasperation. Whatever answer she and his mom hadn't yet told him, the look of regret in her ever changing eyes had been answer enough.

Percy studied his own hands as what Brunner and his own mom kept warning him of echoed in his empty mind. His life was dangerous, and he had not wound up with no memories because it was the easy solution to a normal life.

Will looked fascinated by that, wondering if Posideon himself had sent a trusted cyclops to check in on his kid. Apollo had sent a swan to guide him to camp when he'd run away.

Nico whistled in wonder at that, recalling a similar story Hera had been involved in sending snakes after Hercules in his cradle. Perhaps the goddess had gotten an ill omen this was yet another child of Zeus instead, given his naming.

Only Hearthstone didn't seem to be dwelling on his own memories of this. Jason may not remember such things, but he was completely confident the idea shouldn't surprise him one bit if he suffered similar things growing up. Alex and Magnus had seen many a strange thing, if not so regularly, but often enough even Magnus had felt a sense of a world beyond before he found out his homeless friends had been hiding the existence of gods from him. There had always been something just slightly off about them even more than their state of living should have explained away.

Thalia glanced uneasily up at him and had a bad feeling herself Sally may well have planned this trip as some sort of last farewell to Percy even before that. Montauk was not so far away from Camp-Halfblood, if in fact Ms. Jackson had been building herself up to leave Percy there for years and if this had been yet another instance where she was telling herself to say goodbye to her son for his own good. She knew the story of him being chased there with Grover by a Minitaur and their travels to the Underworld thanks to Annabeth sharing how she'd grown close to Percy, but his mom's involvement had never been given details. Now she was starting to grow worried what had happened to Sally to send Percy there once and for all every summer.

"They who?" Percy asked in outrage.

Thalia didn't answer, of course. Even she wasn't sure if it was a neriad or Posideon himself, but she didn't think Percy would appreciate the answer even if it wouldn't pain him.

Percy was starting to feel a little sick. He should have wanted to hear more about this camp, he could feel how special such a place was even with no idea why the feeling rose in him, but the idea of it being so awful his mom didn't want him to go made him feel like he was being torn in two. How was it possible both could exist, and why was he now dreading getting any mention of it back?

Percy's hands twitched in frustration the conversation had ended there, he started tearing up chunks of his beanbag and spinning the seaweed together in nonexistent patterns only his mind could follow as he longed to know more and instinctively dreaded waking up, let alone hearing of whatever this odd dream could be.

Those that didn't know about Percy's first quest were struggling to keep up just a bit what the significance of this, but none in the know enlightened them about sacred animals and what was stolen. Not just to save their friend the headache, but they still weren't sure themselves why these other kids were down here, or what they should be told.

Percy could swear he could still hear that noise now. He'd never been to a butcher before, but he had a sudden fear he'd never have to before the night was up to know just how powerful a cow could sound.

"Did he turn into a pair of pants?" Magnus asked, but Alex shushed him and even leaned forward a bit with excitement to hear.

'Zeus and other gods!' Percy's brain somehow translated the Greek with no idea Thalia had said anything out of context, but the confused looks of the others and Hearthstone's hands pausing with no idea how to sign that clued him in. Will whispered to them what Grover had said while Thalia swallowed in hopes her satyr friend was speaking metaphorically instead of her own father sending something after Percy.

Something was after him though, perhaps even another Fury. Percy was about to be in trouble, again, and they were only on the third chapter!

"But, I'd like to know at least the second" Jason still tried to protest, but Alex chucked a cushion at him, eyes glued to Thalia with anticipation to hear.

"Oh come on!" Alex threw her hands up in exasperation. "Just tell me already!"

"Grover lost his pants off screen," Percy told her, a bit faintly as he was still processing himself what he'd seen. If his best friend could so easily pass as human... was anyone in here human besides him?

Alex scowled at him for further lack of communication, but Jason had his mouth hanging open with his own confused stare and Thalia wasn't going to leave anyone in suspense with the end of the chapter in hand.

Jason gasped loudest of all, pressing his hand to his temple in true pain for the first time.

PJOPJOPJOPJO

* I'm sure nobody needs to read this in a fanfiction to have the message be reinforced, but don't eat wild berries kids! Even some blueberries could be nightshade in disguise!