A/N. Alright, I'm doing a before chapter author's note because we have some reviews on that I want to answer. First one is:

"Ah, Spider-man. I thought he was similar to Batman." - LoverOfArtemis

You know what, I can actually see that pretty well, but yeah, Spider-Man.

"Has potential looking forward for more updates" -HellRaiderS

Well, thanks for reading and giving this a chance. And here's an update right here. Over 3k words too, so I hope you enjoy.

Anyways, those are all the reviews I have, so onto our regularly scheduled chapter.

1 Month Later, December

Well, folks, it has been a month since Sea Storm left us. In the last month the crime rate has risen, along with the rate of fear. According to a survey done by a private source, 79% of New Yorkers experience some sort of anxiety when running errands after dark.

No one knows what led up to Sea Storm's 'retirement', and theories are widespread. All the way from his death, to 'he's just taking a vacation in the Bahamas'.

The police have made a statement that they are still out on the hunt for the superhero, saying that, "Just because he stopped doesn't clear him of past crimes."

Sea Storm, where are you, and are you happy with what you left New York with?

This is Barbara Winters, with Channel 6 News.

LINE BREAK

Percy was happy.

In the last month, he had worked harder in school, bringing his grades back up to passing. They were barely passing, but passing nonetheless. It was tough since all his late work was graded harshly, but he managed.

He had gotten a job as a waiter at a diner near his apartment. His paycheck helped his mom with paying bills and groceries and other things.

That wasn't to say that all of Percy's check was spent on bills. He helped buy a new natural gas stove and oven, since his mom was helping to teach him how to cook.

In fact, his mother had time to work on her novel now that she didn't have to work as much overtime. She was almost done with her first draft. Her night classes were really helping her.

Also helping her was her boyfriend, Paul Blofis. Pretty cool dude in Percy's opinion. He and his mom had met in the writing class, and they had hit it off.

Not gonna lie, it did kind of hurt him a bit that as soon as he was dumped his mom had a relationship going. Reminding him of what could have been and all that. Still though, his mom deserved to be happy and he was gonna be happy for her.

Speaking of his mom, she was the best person in the entire world. And as we all know, the best people have the worst things happen to them. Her parents died when she was young, and her grandparents tragically followed suit not too long after in a plane crash. She was sent to live with her uncle, who was distant and got cancer when she was in high school. She had to take care of him, and had to drop out of high school. He died a while later when the treatments got too expensive and they ran out of money.

His mom had then got a job at a candy store in Grand Central Station. She had always dreamed of being an author, but sadly she had to put her dreams on the backburner when she got pregnant.

Apparently Percy was the result of a one night stand. So now Sally had to deal with an uncle and a kid. She decided to marry someone who would help out, except he was the worst human being on the planet, Gabe Ugliano.

The way Percy and his stepdad fought made it hard on Sally. Especially since Percy would sometimes win. In those instances, Gabe would take his frustrations out on Sally. He wasn't very happy that a 7 year old managed to beat him. When Gabe left, it was a relief, despite the loss of money.

So his mom had a lot of trouble in life, yet she didn't let it bog her down. And Percy felt like she hadn't been as happy when he was out being a hero. So he took this month to spend time with her.

Halloween had been fun, and Thanksgiving was a blast. She had invited Paul and made a whole day out of cooking. She had brought some candy from her work home to share.

That being said, again, he was a waiter, so he didn't get paid that much, and most of it was from tips. Luckily he had pretty good service, and most of his customers were generous. There were a couple of people who would leave what he thought was a 20 dollar bill, but when he would pick it up, it would be blank on the other side with a bible verse. He made sure to keep them in a jar. He figured that once he filled it up he would take it to a church and put them in the donation box. See how they like it.

And now, it was December. This was one of his favorite times of year, the other being the summer. He couldn't wait to start drinking hot chocolate, watch Christmas movies with his mom and hear the seasonal songs.

He breathed in the cold air as he walked out of the school. He smiled as he walked off of the property and down the sidewalk. He walked all the way to the diner he worked at.

"Hey Joe." He said as he walked into the diner.

Joe was the owner of the diner. Which is why it was called 'Joe's Diner'. He was a nice, older man. Not yet elderly, but not middle aged. He worked any job in the diner, from cook to cashier to janitor. He preferred to get his hands dirty over sitting in his office counting his money.

"Hey Percy. How are you doing?" He said, looking up from the table. Looked like he was bussing tables today.

"Same old, same old. Let me get changed and I'll be right to waiting."

"Alright. Also, Brianna can't make it, can you cover for her?"

"I don't know, you gonna pay me her salary for a day's work?" Percy asked jokingly. He already knew the answer.

"Obviously. Who do you take me for, Jeff Bezos?" Joe joked.

That was another thing about Joe, he was a great boss. Payed his workers equally, without discrimination. (All the workers had checked when a payment scandal rocked the streets.) However little that was, it was still better than if he worked elsewhere. Joe's diner was every waiter's dream job.

Percy laughed as he walked into the bathroom. He changed and walked out, putting his backpack in the breakroom.

"Table 9 Percy!" Joe yelled.

"Got ya!" He yelled back, taking out his pad and pen, getting ready for drink orders.

He walked over to the table with a golden 9 etched in the wood. There was a group of girls there, all watching him approach.

He stopped in front of the table still looking at his pad. "Hello, welcome to Joe's Diner, the diner by Joe. I'll be your waiter today. Name's Percy. Can I get some drinks to start you off with?" Then he looked up. And fuck.

The first person he looked at was none other than his ex, Zoë Nightshade.

"Uh…" His throat went dry. Um… drinks?" He barely managed the word out of his mouth.

"Uh, yeah, I'll have a coke." Zoë started. She looked like she was struggling too.

The rest of the group went in order as they ordered their drinks. Percy wrote them down on his pad.

Percy continued writing as he spoke. "All right, I'll be back out with those in a couple minutes. Depends on Brian." He said, smiling near the end.

He walked off to the kitchen. He turned the order in and waited for Brian to bring the drinks.

Brian gave him the drinks and Percy took them to the table.

One thing about being a waiter is that it built up strength when you brought out food and drinks.

Unless you were Percy, who was blessed by a God and had the strength of one. In which case, carrying stuff didn't bother him one bit.

"Here's your drinks." Percy said as he handed them out. He did his best to remember who ordered what, but he did occasionally have to ask.

He put the tray under his arm. "Do you girls know what you want to eat?"

"I think Zoë does." One whispered to the other. "You see her eying him?"

"I'm sorry, what?" Percy asked, not hearing what they were saying.

"I'll take the ½ pound burger!" Zoë panicked.

"Okay." He jotted that down. "How do you want it cooked?"

"Well done."

"Fries?"

She nodded.

He turned to the rest of the table. "How about the rest if you?"

The rest of the table ordered. Percy ripped out the paper and put it on the counter for Brian. Brian picked it up and nodded at him. Percy nodded back as he walked into the break room.

His backpack sat in a chair by a table. He walked over to it and opened it. He pulled out a bag of chips and started eating. He needed something to tide him over. It would be a while before he would get to eat again.

At least when he got home he could eat dinner, and then maybe he and his mom would watch a movie, if she wasn't busy writing. Oh, wait, she and Paul were on a date, so that was a no-go.

A bell rang from the kitchen, causing Percy to sigh. He got up and walked out of the breakroom to the kitchen. He grabbed a tray and started to put the food on it. He took the food over to the table.

He handed it out, with help from the group, and put the tray under his arm once again. "Call me over if you need anything, alright?"

They nodded, and Percy walked away. Back to eating chips. While he was in the middle of the bag of doritos, Joe came into the breakroom. He raised an eyebrow at the young boy.

"You know you can eat a burger or something, right?"

Percy shrugged. "Don't have the money."

"I pay you, and you get an employee discount."

"Well, I also help pay for an apartment, so there's that."

Joe hmmed. "Just eat something, it's on me." He said, before walking out.

Percy rolled his eyes. He walked into the kitchen where Brian was sitting around.

"It's a slow day today isn't it?" Percy asked.

"Yeah, it hasn't been like this in forever. Before you, that's for sure."

"Want me to spice it up?"

"What?"

"Wanna make me a burger?" Percy asked, smiling innocently.

"Sure, how do you want it?"

"Well done."

"What do you want on it?"

"Just leave it plain."

"You got it."

Percy watched as Brian cooked the burger. He flipped the patty with grace that he hadn't seen anybody do in forever. Soon enough, a plain burger on a plate was being handed to Percy. He thanked Brian before heading out to the dining room.

Joe interrupted him. "Here's the bill for table 9, you know what to do. And I'm glad you're eating something." He handed Percy the bill.

Percy nodded and took the bill from him. He walked over to table 9. "Here's the bill. Whenever you're ready, go up to the counter and Ari will be your cashier. Hope you enjoyed your meal."

He walked over to another table, one right next to a window. He placed his food on the table and sat down. Percy had to admit, the burger looked really good.

He picked it up and bit into it.

He was a couple of bites in when someone sat down next to him. Percy looked next to him to see Zoë.

"Hey." She said.

"Hi."

"It's been a while."

"Yeah, a month."

"How have you been?"

"Alright, it's been getting better."

"So, a waiter, huh?"

"Yeah, Joe was hiring, and I figured I could help out my mom."

"Nice."

"How about you, I never found out how you did at the interview."

"Uh, I kind of bombed it. Froze up… and yeah."

"Damn. I'm sorry."

"Nah, it's not your fault."

Percy nodded. "You know, Grover has missed you."

Zoë looked downcast. "I… I…"

"I know, safety and all that."

"Percy, you don't understand. My father, he's hunting you. Like you're a deer. I'm doing it to protect you."

"Zoë, we're in public." He warned.

She sighed. "I have to go."

"Alright. See you around, maybe."

Zoë got up and walked back to her group.

'Don't look back, don't look back, don't look back.' Percy told himself.

He looked back.

LINE BREAK

The girls had left him a big tip. Twenty dollars. They were also his only table all night, so it really helped that they tipped good.

Percy clocked out of the diner with that twenty dollars in his pocket. He pulled his hoodie together, before zipping it closed. It was a cold night, and even worse, it was forecasted to rain heavily. Not that it would wet him. Water powers and all.

He had refrained from actively using them. He couldn't help the passive ones. Like how the fuck do you turn off the ability to know latitude and longitude when at sea. You don't, that's how.

He walked down the road, ready to get inside the apartment. It was getting colder since the sun had already set. He turned onto his street, and saw a bright light. His eyes widened as he saw the inferno of flames that was in an apartment building.

His apartment building.

Fire trucks were lined up around the building, shooting water at the flames. Percy ran to them, before he saw that his mom's car was in the parking lot. That meant…

...SHE (and probably Paul) WERE IN THE BUILDING!

Percy ran towards the building, before he was grabbed from behind by a firefighter. Percy elbowed the person in the stomach, not caring to reel in his strength. The firefighter let go as one of his ribs cracked.

Percy ran forward and into the building. The heat of the flames made him start to sweat. He ran past flaming rooms as he ran to his apartment. He burned his hand as he touched the metal door handle.

He brought his hand back, then proceeded to kick the door down. Now normally, this wouldn't work, but you know, superpowers.

He ran into the apartment and looked around. The room was torched. It was like hell itself made itself home in the Jackson's home. Paul was on the couch, already dead from the burns. His mother was on the kitchen floor, burns covering her body.

Percy ran over to her and looked her over. It looked like she was still alive, and suffering because of it. Her eyes were red, and she was coughing from the smoke.

"Mom." Percy's voice cracked as he knelt down next to her.

"Percy."

"I.. I can get help… The fire department… they're downstairs. It'll be okay."

His mom coughed. "I'm not going to make it down. My story ends here."

"No… no… I… I can help. THEY can help."

She smiled weakly. "You know this is the end." She coughed again. She motioned him closer.

He knelt closer.

"You can't save everyone, Sea Storm." She smiled fondly.

Percy sat back up slowly. "You knew?" He asked softly.

She nodded. "I found your chest."

Percy was silent for a couple of seconds. He had no idea what to say. His mom knew he used to be a superhero. "You knew I was a hero."

"You're a hero. You'll be a great one. You'll be the best."

"I can't do that if I sit here and watch you die!"

"But you're here, fulfilling my last wish. Saving me from regretting never seeing you again. That's a great hero thing there. The best…"

Percy stared at his mom. He watched as the light in her eyes faded, then closed.

Percy sat down. The flames crawled closer to him but he didn't care. Outside, thunder rumbled. His breathing was uneven as he realized that he was now alone. His mom was gone, and now he had no one else.

"HELP!"

Percy looked around before he heard it again. It was coming from the floor above him. He stood up and ran out of the apartment. He ran up the stairs and followed the screams for help. It sounded like a young girl.

The screams came from the apartment on the left. He burst into it and looked around.

"HELP!"

It came from a room down the small hallway. He ran to it and went into the room. The flames were burning through the furniture. The cries came from in the closet. He ran over to the closet and threw the door open.

Sitting on the floor, terrified, was a little girl. She sat below the smoke line, not inhaling it. It wouldn't be long until she started though. Percy took his jacket off and handed it to her.

"Cover your mouth and nose." He ordered. "I'm going to get you out of here."

She nodded and did what he said. Percy picked her up, made sure she wasn't breathing the smoke, then ran out of the room. He exited the door just as the ceiling in the kitchen of the apartment caved in.

Percy ran towards the stairs and jumped down. He ran out of the building as the top of the building itself fell into itself.

Percy held the tiny child as he tried to look for her parents. There was a couple who was crying, saying something about their daughter who was still in the building. Percy walked up to them and held the girl out for them to see.

"MIA!" The mother exclaimed as she saw her daughter.

Percy let the parents be as he finally looked down at himself. His diner uniform was burnt badly. He didn't think the place Joe took the uniforms to get dry cleaned could fix the holes and soot that peppered his white button up shirt. It was less noticeable on the tie.

He sighed to himself as he resigned himself to Joe's wrath. Who was he kidding, Joe would laugh it off and give him a new uniform. Maybe, just maybe, he would take it out of his paycheck.

But unlike the uniform that could be replaced, his mother was not replaceable. He fell to his knees as he looked at the burning building. He wanted to be mad, but who would he be mad at? As far as he knew, the fire was an accident that just happened. Not like it was planned.

Thunder rumbled as his emotions laid in turmoil. Rain began to pour from the skies. The fire grew bigger as it rained harder. The sky gave no shits as it continued to pour.

And for the first time since gaining powers, Percy got wet.

LINE BREAK

Percy sat in the police station. His hair and clothes were still dripping wet. It still rained outside, thundering frequently, and lightning lighting up the night sky. He switched between watching the water drip from his clothes to watching the thunderstorm outside.

He had been pried away from the scene of the fire by Mr. Nightshade. Percy didn't have the heart to care. He was sure that he could have sat there forever if no one moved him.

His leg bounced as he waited for the Police Chief to come back. Mr. Nightshade was running a scan to see if his mom had any remaining family that Percy could be taken in by.

Percy amused himself by thinking about possible outcomes of this. The most likely was that they found no relatives and he was thrown into an orphanage to live in until he turned 18. His craziest idea was that he had an uncle who was a billionaire and inventor. 'Like that'll ever happen.' he mused to himself.

Mr. Nightshade came back. "Well, we found someone to take you in."

Percy's head came up as he looked into the cruel eyes of the Chief. He idly remembered that Zoë's eyes were similar, except they were kinder. Fierce, but kind.

"Yeah?" He asked.

"Yeah, we contacted him, and he should be here soon."

"Gonna tell me who it is?" Percy asked.

Mr. Nightshade chuckled. "Oh no. I'll introduce him once he arrives."

They waited for about 30 minutes before a crazy driven car parked in the parking lot. Percy paid no mind to the person. He assumed they were just using the parking lot so they could go to the Pizza Palace next door.

But then the door of the station opened.

"Percy, meet your new caretaker…"

Percy looked up and scowled. Still looking like a walrus, drunk off his ass, three lone hairs combed over, as if it made him handsome, was his old stepdad.

"Gabriel Uglianio." Mr. Atlas finished.

"Hello, stepson." Gabe sneered.

"Hello, Smelly Gabe."

A/N. Alright, the longest chapter of this story. Not sure if they rest will be this long, we'll just have to find out.

So, Sally's dead. I know that her death probably wasn't very hard hitting, since she barely had any development, eh, fuck it. It was even worse before _Zaeng started helping me out with it.

Speaking of, thank you once again to _Zaeng for betaing this chapter, and helping with fleshing out Sally's character. I legit couldn't have done it without you.

I know I just updated this not that long ago, but I like this story, so sue me. And even then, I don't think there is that much left for this story. I would say maybe halfway there. It all really depends on how I split up chapters.

Thoughts?