5

End of the Day

It did not take long for Percy and Selene to find John, for they all ran into each other shortly after leaving the tent. John was spooked and out of breath. Percy wasted no time in rushing over towards his dad. Embracing his side, Percy helped John over to Selene before letting go of him and moving off to the side.

Concerned for his well-being, Selene quickly checked over him as she asked, "Are you alright? What happened?" As John nodded his head, Selene felt relieved. She gave John a quick hug before releasing him and stepping back.

John walked away and sat down against a tree before pointing back towards the way he came. "Black…dogs are what happened," he said in between deep breaths.

Nodding her head, Selene said, "Go back to my tent. I won't be long," before rushing towards John's previous location.

"Black dogs?" Percy asked as he sat down beside his father, watching his mother run off into the dark forest.

"Monsters," John replied, after taking another deep breath.

"Oh," Percy said before laying back on the tree. However, he did not seem entirely relaxed.

Noticing this, John placed his left arm around Percy, who seemed to not really care. "This must all be overwhelming to you, bud," John said.

Sighing, Percy looked over at his dad. Percy still looked quite exhausted; he did not really want to trouble his father. However, John seemed to insist as he gave him a reassuring look. "Well... it's so cool to have mom back, to know she is some goddess and everything, you know? A lot of my questions were answered and I got this cool necklace," Percy said as he showed his father the silver medallion around his neck, "but then I find out I need to go to some camp, something is trying to kill us, and we will have to split from mom again," Percy finished as he laid his head back, a bit relieved to have gotten that off his chest.

"I know how you feel, pal," John sympathized as he patted Percy's shoulder.

"You do?" Percy asked in disbelief. Surely his father could not know how he felt, as his life growing up always seemed to be perfect.

Slowly nodding his head, John said, "It was a lot to take in when your mom explained her world and everything that was involved with it. To have your world turned upside down is not a comfortable feeling, no matter how excited or happy it might make you feel."

Percy turned his head to look over at his dad, and asked, "How did you get through things?"

Smiling, John rubbed Percy's shoulder before saying, "I took things one step at a time, and I had help. Just like you will, here now and at that camp you will be going to. Okay?"

Percy slowly nodded his head. It was reassuring to know he truly wouldn't be alone. He was truly excited about everything he learned, but this camp thing would take a bit to get used to. School was never his thing, always being picked on for his disorders. Although, deep down, Percy had a small feeling that this camp might be different.

As Percy laid back against his father's arm, he realized something. "Wait, mom said you did not want me to go?"

Chuckling, John said "Yes, that is true… but after recent events, I think she may be right,"

"About that.."

Taking a deep breath, John began, "There are these things called hellhounds. Guardians of the underworld, your mom would say. They were sneaking up on me I guess, and one lunged at me just as I tripped over a stick thanks to the dark. It landed on a pointy tree stump, which is where that sound you guys heard came from. I got up and then booked it back towards the tent."

"Guess it was a good thing you forgot about the flashlight then," Percy joked.

Rolling his eyes, John said, "I tell you I almost died and here you are making jokes."

"But you didn't" Percy chuckled, "and you're that exhausted after running what? A hundred meters?"

As he jokingly shook his head, John laughed as well. "Yeah, yeah. Let's see you run that fast and far at my age, you won't be laughing then."


The boys sat and laughed about random things for another five minutes as the moon light that was currently illuminating their location began to fade away.

Noticing this, Percy asked, "Our moon light is going away, and mom is not back yet, do you think she is alright? She didn't take a light with her."

"I am sure she is fine; light seems to follow her whenever she wants no matter how dark it is," John explained. "Besi.."

SNAP

Bolting up from the sound of branches breaking in the distance, fear began to take hold of Percy and John as they scanned the area.

"Back to the tent," John ordered as he took out his pistol before pushing Percy towards Selene's tent.

Not wasting a second, Percy bolted towards the tent. Not again, he internally groaned. It wasn't until he made it safely to the tent's entrance that he looked back from where he came that Percy realized he left his dad alone, and exhausted.

"Shit," Percy swore before carefully making his way back towards his father. "DAD?" he shouted. But just as he was about to break into the forest, John came stumbling out.

"I'm..fine," John shouted wearily. Running truly wasn't his strength.

Relived, Percy ran over and helped his father to one of his mother's wooden chairs that sat by the entrance of her tent.

Once John was settled, Percy looked back to the forest. He was now concerned for his mother's wellbeing.

Noticing Percy's inability to stand still, John said, "She will be fine. She is a goddess after all."

Percy seemed to ignore this as he asked, "did you see what was in the woods?"

"No."

This only increased Percy's anxiety as his pacing speed increased. "What if mom is in trouble. Maybe that thing stalking us went after her. I cannot lose her again," were all things that cycled through Percy's head.

Percy became more restless as time went on.

Having caught onto this, John said, "I know what you are thinking, but don't. We do not know what is out there."

Percy seemed to ignore this as just after his father finished, Percy gave in. Grabbing a flashlight, he bolted back towards the forest. John was about to protest but luckily Percy was stopped by someone just as he reached the forest entrance.

"Mom!" Percy exclaimed as her sudden appearance surprised him.

Giving Percy a half-cocked smile, Selene patted Percy's back before leading him back towards his father. She seemed quite frustrated. Sitting down in the chair beside John, Selene let out a frustrated sigh.

"Stupid dogs won't leave me alone. No matter how many I kill, they always keep coming back," Selene grumbled as Percy sat on the grass between his parents.

Neither Percy nor John knew what to say, so they sat there as they listened to Selene vent on about hellhounds and other monsters always lurking in the shadows. How she cannot find a moment of peace.

Percy was quite interested in what his mother had to say, but it was getting late. With the long car ride, the walk in the forest, the talk with his mother and father, and then the hellhounds, Percy was burnt out. Yawning, he began to struggle to keep his eyes open.

As Selene finished, she looked over at her half-asleep son. "I think it is about time for bed," she commented while rising from her seat. "Eh John?" Selene continued as she looked over to John, who was currently fast asleep. The exhaustion had finally gotten to him.

Slowly shaking her head with a small smile, Selene picked up Percy. Bringing him to one of her spare rooms, she tucked him in before kissing his forehead good night. Selene then left Percy to go and deal with John. Luckily enough, John waddled in by himself.

"Uma crash on the couch," John mumbled before flopping down on the couch, falling back to sleep within seconds.

Giggling at his silliness, Selene made sure to place a blanket over John's body before kissing his forehead too. Any sort of anger she once felt was completely flushed out. The sight of two people she loved dearly could not keep her upset for long. She felt complete.


4 days later

Over the next few days, Percy enjoyed the time he spent with both his mother and father. His dad wasn't stressed over work and his mom seemed to really enjoy the company. Overall, it was shaping up to be a wonderful time. Percy learned a lot about the Greek world. Selene explained to him that, through the ages, the mythological world of Greece moved to locations that were the centers of power. This is what led to talk of the camp Percy would eventually end up in. Much of what he was told was that it was a haven where people like him (sons and daughters of the Greek gods and goddesses) trained to become heroes like Herakles and Perseus, one of Selene's favourite heroes. Much of what Percy fretted about was relieved upon hearing the people within the camp dealt with the problems he inherited due to his parentage.

Now, after having gone through the basics, Percy was eager to press his mom on his powers. He had been trying to figure them out himself, but nothing interesting ever happened. The week was coming to an end, and he thought it was about time his mother told him.

Currently, all three were sitting at the kitchen table eating eggs and bacon that Selene had just made for the two of them. If there was a good time to ask, it is most likely now.

After finishing the slice of bacon that he was currently holding, Percy began to play with his eggs.

"Sooo...I was thinking maybe we could…I don't know…talk about my powers?" Percy casually said as he continued to poke his egg's yoke.

There were a few seconds of silence before John spoke up, beating Selene, "I think that is a wonderful idea. Don't you Lee?" John agreed as he turned towards Selene.

Feeling like she was backed into a corner, it was hard for Selene to say no. She had been hoping to hold off on this, but Selene did not really have a proper reason as to why.

"Why not?" she smiled as she took a sip of her drink.

Percy's eyes lit up. He thought he might have gotten another lame excuse, but this time he was wrong. "Really?" he beamed.

Selene nodded her head, "but first I think we should focus a bit on that necklace of yours. We will start in a couple of hours."

Percy was overjoyed at this, for he would finally learn about these sick powers he had been fantasizing about. This was turning out to be the second-best day of his life.