A/N: Hey, guys! I'm getting back in the habit of things, and school's pretty much over, so I should be updating more frequently. Thank you to everyone who has read/favorited/followed/reviewed this story even though it's been inactive for a while. I'm sorry about that. You guys are absolutely the best and give me so much motivation. This story wouldn't be possible without you.
For those of you wondering about Nico...We still have a few more chapters to get through (maybe one or two? No more than three for sure, and I doubt it'll be that long to begin with). But don't worry! He'll be there :)
Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians or any of its characters. All rights go to Rick Riordan.
Warning: Just a brief mention of mildly strong language, but I still like to warn just in case. Also a canon character injury.
Enjoy!
The infirmary door opened with a bang. Lee, who was searching for something in the supply closet at the time, jumped and hit his head on a shelf. Will nearly dropped the canteen of nectar he was holding. Both brothers looked toward the noise to see Michael standing in the doorway, not looking apologetic in the slightest, even as Lee glared at him.
"You two," he declared, "have been cooped up in here for too long." Will opened his mouth to protest, but Michael cut him off before he could say anything. "No, don't argue, Will. You guys have been working since breakfast ended. You didn't come to lunch, and now we only have two hours before dinner. It's time to take a break."
"Michael, we have work to do." Lee protested.
"All you're doing is restocking the infirmary and taking inventory. There's no one to treat in here." Michael shot back.
"Restocking is very important."
"It can also wait until tomorrow."
"You do realize that I'm the one in charge of you, right?"
Michael rolled his eyes. "Please. Without me, the two of you would work yourselves to death. We all know who really keeps the Apollo Cabin afloat."
"I'm pretty sure it's still Lee," Will piped up.
Lee laughed as Michael turned to look at Will, betrayed. "Will," he said, "you wound me. I can't believe my own little brother would stab me in the back like this."
Will smiled brightly. He always loved hearing Lee or Michael call him their little brother. It really made him feel like a permanent part of a family.
"Nevertheless," Michael continued, bringing Will's attention back to him, "I came here with a mission, and I am, without doubt, the most stubborn brother."
Lee and Will were silent. It was true.
Michael smiled triumphantly. "Come on, guys. Let's go canoeing or something." When they didn't respond, Michael's gaze hardened. "I will get Luke and Clarisse to drag the two of you out of here," he threatened. "They both owe me a favor."
That got both of them moving. Will hurriedly placed the canteen he was holding on a random bedside table and ran over to Michael. Lee closed the closet door and soon joined them. Michael grabbed Will's right wrist and Lee's left and dragged them outside; Lee and Will both squinted when the bright sunlight accosted their eyes, and Michael scoffed at them. "You two are sons of Apollo. You shouldn't be hiding from the sunlight." Lee and Will both ignored him.
Michael did end up dragging them to the lake, but instead of canoeing, he suggested that they all take a swim. Lee ran back to to the Apollo Cabin to get their swimming trunks, and Michael flopped down on the sand, motioning for Will to lay down next to him.
He did, and he let out a sigh as the sun soaked into his skin. Michael is right, he thought. Apollo kids do need to be in the sun.
After a brief period of silence, Will asked Michael something he hadn't asked any of his siblings before. "Michael, do you have any siblings?"
Michael turned his head to face him, regarding him with confused brown eyes. "Uh, yeah? You guys," he said.
Will shook his head, looking back up at the sky. He was afraid to meet Michael's eyes. "I mean," he began, "I—" He stopped. He inhaled deeply, and exhaled slowly, hoping that the older boy wouldn't notice his unease. He started again. "I mean siblings apart from us. On your mother's side."
"Oh. Well, yeah. I've got two brothers. One is older than I am, and the other is younger."
Will didn't know why, exactly, but Michael's answer made him feel sad. "What are they like?" he asked softly.
"Okay, well, my older brother's name is Jacob, and my little brother's name is Alexander, but we all call him Al. My mom had Jacob when she was a teen. He goes to visit his dad sometimes, but typically we don't talk to him or about him much. My mom married Al's dad when I was three, and Al was born a year later, almost exactly." He laughed softly before continuing. "Jacob's really smart. He was just accepted into Harvard, so I guess soon I won't be as far away from him as I am now. Boston's not too far from New York. Al is kind of the golden child, even if he is so young. He's athletic, but he's smart and resourceful, too. Everyone loves him, for some reason."
That caught Will's attention. He turned to face Michael again. "What do you mean, 'for some reason'? Both of your brothers seem really cool."
Michael met his eyes and shrugged. "They are. In the opinion of other people. But I think they're both kind of boring. All they care about is themselves. Every second of every day is devoted to improving and perfecting their skills. Don't get me wrong," he said hurriedly, "there's nothing wrong with that. But they have always been so focused on school or sports that I've really never heard them talk about anything else. They have their own lives, and I have mine. I'm cool with it, because I'd choose you and Lee over Jacob and Al anyday." He smiled at Will.
"Really?" Will smiled back.
Michael nodded. "Definitely. In fact, they were complaining the last time I visited them that all I ever talked about was what you and Lee had been doing, how awesome you guys were, and how excited I was to go on that hiking trip we planned."
Will's heart swelled with happiness. It felt like there was so much that he needed to say, but he couldn't string together the words to say them. Finally, he settled on, "We think you're a great brother, too, Michael."
Michael sat up and reached over to ruffle Will's hair. "Lee Fletcher, Michael Yew, and Will Solace. The best trio there ever was. The best brothers."
Sand sprayed over them both before anything else could be said. Lee smiled sheepishly and tossed their swim trunks at them. "Sorry I'm so late; Silena had a question about the next counselor meeting."
They each took turns changing behind a tree that Lee assured them wasn't the home of a nymph. When they were all finished, they headed toward the lake. It was getting fairly late, and there wasn't anyone else at the lake, much to the sons of Apollo's delight.
Michael, in true Michael fashion, immediately started a splash war. Will didn't have time to dodge or duck before he got a faceful of lakewater. He sputtered and brushed his wet blond curls from his eyes. Grinning, he wiped water from his eyes. Lee yelled, "I've got your back, Will!" and Will heard Michael scream in outrage. Once he could see clearly again, he lept into battle, sending a huge wave of water cascading over Michael.
"No fair!" Michael yelled. "You guys can't gang up on me!"
"We can and we did!" Lee shouted back. He trudged through the water to Will, grabbed him around the waist, and slung him on top of his shoulders. Will knew that Lee probably shouldn't be supporting the weight of a nine-year-old, especially, since Will was tall for his age, but his brother had broad shoulders and strong arms from archery, and Will was having too much fun to care.
When Michael saw Will on top on Lee's shoulders, he went for a different method of attack. He ducked under the water and swam towards Lee. When he broke the surface, he jumped out at his brother and wrapped his limbs around Lee's midsection, effectively knocking him off balance. Will and Lee both screamed as they were engulfed by the water.
The world went quiet and Will opened his eyes. He couldn't see much in the murky lake water, but he felt Lee's hands loosen around his ankles. When he was sure that he wasn't going to kick Lee, Will pushed his way to the surface.
Michael and Lee had already resurfaced, and the latter was glaring at the former. "It's dangerous to tackle people," he accused.
Michael rolled his eyes as Lee crossed his arms over his chest. "You're just bitter that I won against the two of you," Michael shot back.
A mischievous glint entered the Apollo counselor's eyes, and he uncrossed his arms as he said, "Yeah, that wasn't fair at all. How could someone as short as you topple two people as tall as us?"
Will roared with laughter as Michael sputtered indignantly. Lee received a faceful of lakewater.
They splashed around for a another half hour, and then Lee declared that they should start getting ready for dinner. Reluctantly, Will and Michael acquiesced. As they were walking back to their cabin to change, Will said, "Thanks for forcing us to take a break, Michael."
The dark haired boy grinned. "That's what I'm here for: making sure you knuckleheads don't work yourselves onto a gurney."
"We wouldn't do that!" Lee protested.
Michael raised an unimpressed eyebrow at him. "Yes, you would. You'd make sure Will didn't, but he'd be making sure that you didn't either, and then both of you would just end up in the infirmary anyway. You may be doctors, but you guys suck at taking care of yourselves."
They arrived at the Apollo Cabin, and the three brothers changed quickly back into their T-shirts and shorts. Then, they made their way down to dinner together.
Abby was sitting next to Brooke, but Will didn't see Cyrus anywhere. Michael walked past Will and sat down across from Brooke. Will sat next to him, and Lee sat on Abby's other side. "Where's Cyrus?" he asked.
Brooke rolled her eyes. "He's trying to break a personal record. He wants to prove that he can hit a bullseye one hundred times in a row. Beckendorf and Clarisse are counting for him."
"He was at sixty-two when we left him," Abby added.
"How long ago was that?" asked Michael.
Abby and Brooke looked at each other and shrugged. "Maybe ten minutes ago?" Abby guessed.
Lee sighed. "Well, I guess we shouldn't be expecting him to join us anytime soon."
Eventually they got their food and went to scrape an offering into the fire. Will was standing behind Lee, and though he couldn't be sure, he thought he heard his older brother ask their father to watch over Grover, Annabeth, and Percy. It made Will immediately feel guilty. He hadn't asked for the campers' safety once the entire time they had been gone. When Lee finished and it was Will's turn, he prayed to his father. Hey, Dad. Uh, I hope you like the smell of pulled pork. Anyway, I just wanted to ask you to watch over everyone on that quest. The headlines have been kind of crazy, and I think they'd appreciate divine help. So...thanks.
He felt awkward after the prayer, but also better now that he had done it. He made his way over to the Apollo table and rejoined his siblings. Michael and Abby were fighting over whether wind or string instruments were superior; Lee was watching them in amusement. Brooke was completely engrossed in the burrito she was eating, and Will couldn't blame her—it looked delicious. Will sat down and started to eat his sandwich, only giving the instrument debate half of his attention.
"Guys," Lee interrupted, "you should probably eat your food before it gets cold." He looked pointedly at the stew and the pizza slice sitting on their plates. Michael and Brooke both looked surprised, like they had forgotten that their food was there, but they quickly mumbled their assent and ate with gusto.
Will eyed Michael's pizza. "You eat pizza for lunch every single day," he said, sending daggers at Michael's meat lover's.
Abby groaned. "And you two have this argument nearly every week!"
In retaliation to both of his siblings, Michael took an enormous bite of his pizza. With his mouth still full, he said, "Gif i' up, Will. Ah am not chanvin' my eatin' habuts."
"Gross, Michael!" Brooke said, wrinkling her nose.
Lee interjected, "Michael, don't talk with your mouth full. Will, don't nag him about his lunch. Although," he added, "Will is right, Michael. Eating that every day is unhealthy."
Michael swallowed and then shrugged. "Think of it like this," he said. "The gods dictate our lives from the moment we're born to the moment of our deaths. I'll be damned—"
Lee's hands flew to cover Will's ears. "Michael!"
"—if I die the way they want me to. So, if having a slightly unhealthy body means I'm not defending them to the best of my ability, so be it. I get to control the way I die, even if it's something as insignificant as that."
They all stared at him for a second, and then Brooke said, "That's the worst logic I've ever heard in my life."
"It is not!" Michael defended.
"It totally is," Lee agreed.
Will and Abby said, "Yeah," simultaneously.
Michael pouted and was about to shoot back a retort when Cyrus ran up to them, drenched in sweat but grinning triumphantly. He let out a whoop, loud and disruptive enough that some campers from the other tables turned their heads to look at them. Ignoring the stares, Cyrus plopped himself down next to Will. "Guys," he said proudly, "I beat my personal record! One hundred bullseyes in a row, baby!"
Everyone congratulated him, some more enthusiastically than others, and Lee told him that he needed to hurry up and get something to eat since dinner was ending in fifteen minutes. After Cyrus had scraped a portion of his meal into the fire and returned to the table, conversation resumed. Apparently, according to Abby, Luke Castellan had been venturing into the forest lately, and word had it that he was either praying to his father to keep Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase, and Grover Underwood safe, or that he was meeting with a wood nymph. The Aphrodite Cabin in particular was rooting for the latter, especially since no one knew how a relationship like that would work out. Some had tried following him to find out, but Luke was Luke, and if he wanted to do something secretly, then no one was going to find out about it until he let them in on it.
Soon enough the conch sounded, and everyone hurried to eat the last bites of their meal, especially Cyrus. Once he had finished, Lee led them back to the Apollo Cabin. They gathered around one of the golden wooden columns before going inside, where Lee's latest project was on display.
"So, this is what you've been working on," Cyrus mused, gazing in adoration at the carvings.
"Yep," Lee said proudly. "I'm not finished yet, but then again, this is a big project. When I'm done, all of our names will be up there, along with a blurb about each of us."
They all turned to look at Lee in surprise when he said the last part. Will knew—they all knew—that Lee was carving the names of the people in their cabin on the column, including the names of past Apollo campers, supplied by Chiron. But they didn't know that he was planning on writing something about them, too. The project had already made them all feel really special and proud of their thoughtful older brother, but now...now the gesture seemed so much more sentimental and intimate. Every demigod knew that they would one day die, and that that day was probably not too far away. But with Lee's project, their names and a small piece of them would always be here at Camp Half-Blood, and they would never be completely forgotten.
"A blurb?" Michael asked quietly.
Lee's eyes soften as he regarded each of them. "Yes," he said, "I'm not gonna let any one of us go to the Underworld without his or her—or, as I probably should include, their—name being carved on a column. When I fill up one column, I'll just move on to another. One day, maybe the entire cabin will be covered with names, but that's okay. Just promise me something." Here he paused, and his gaze raked over all of them again. "When I die—" Everyone started protesting, but he held up his hand to stop them, and then continued. "When I die, whoever becomes counselor next, they will finish this for me. Promise me that they'll keep adding names as we get campers. Because, as much as we protested his logic at dinner tonight, Michael is right. The gods take a lot from us, and sometimes we forget that we aren't just demigods—we're a human family. And this family is never going to fail each other, right guys?" All of them nodded tearfully and a chorus of I promise answered Lee's words. He smiled at them. "Let's go inside, shall we?"
As everyone started to file through the door, Will hung back with Lee. "Thank you," he whispered to his brother.
Lee reached over and ruffled his hair. "I would do anything for you guys."
"Will! Lee! It's Percy; he's been poisoned!"
Beckendorf's shout made Will's blood run cold. He met Lee's eyes, both gazes filled with horror, and then they snapped into action. Lee ran to the door of the infirmary to help Beckendorf get Percy inside, and Will rushed to push a bed close to the door. Lee and Beckendorf came around the corner right as Will got the bed in place. They laid Percy on the bed and Will immediately started scanning his body for signs of harm. He soon spotted one. "Here, on his hand," Will told Lee.
It was obviously a sting of some kind, but it was way too big to be an insect's. The poison had definitely entered Percy's body here; the skin around the wound was swollen and quickly changing color. Lee must have been thinking the same thing because he told Beckendorf to go back to the forest and look for a monster or animal that might have caused this, but to be careful. The son of Hephaestus left hurriedly. Will turned back to the son of Poseidon.
"What do you think it is?" Lee asked him.
Will shrugged. "At this point, I'm not sure. We need to get the poison out of him before we do anything else, though. Hand me that canteen of nectar."
Lee handed it to him, and Will poured a little of it into Percy's mouth. The dark haired boy groaned, but he was still unconscious. He was sweating, and heat was radiating off of his skin. Will grabbed Percy's wrist and placed his thumb on his pulse point. He frowned. Percy's pulse was much slower than it should be; the poison was taking effect fast.
Will turned to Lee. "I need you to go get Chiron. Hopefully by the time you get back with him I'll have figured something out, but we may end up needing his abilities."
Lee started to protest. "Will, I'm not leaving you to do this alone—"
"Go," Will commanded, "Percy doesn't have long. Anything that you could say, I already know. But I need you to get Chiron before he gets too much worse, just in case. Please, Lee."
Lee stared at Will for a long moment. Will felt a little bad for saying what he had. This was the person who had taught him nearly everything he knew about healing. Lee was his brother. What right did Will have to tell Lee that he didn't need him?
Lee sighed. "Do what you can," he said. Then he rushed out of the infirmary, shouting Chiron's name as he went.
Will poured a little more nectar into Percy's mouth. There was almost no change. His breathing was still labored, his pulse was still faint, and his skin was still pale and clammy. Chiron and Lee told him that his powers should only be used in emergencies, when nothing else worked. It took so much energy. Lee also didn't like him using them without being in the room himself to make sure Will didn't overdo it. But he didn't see any other option; Percy wouldn't make it if he didn't do something immediately.
Will closed his eyes. Gently, he placed his hands over the sting on Percy's, one on top of the other as though he was about to start chest compressions. He reached within himself and searched for the energy supply that would heal the son of Poseidon. Once he found the warm, glowing mass, he concentrated on redirecting its flow so that it left him through his hands and entered Percy's body through his wound. Though he couldn't see it with his eyes closed, Will could tell that the energy was encompassing the wound and healing it. He felt it rushing after the poison that had entered Percy's veins, catching up to it and then overcoming it, successfully stopping it in its tracks. He felt his own health and wellness, his own energy, dilute the poison until it was no more, just as it had done to the poison in Malcolm's bloodstream all those years ago.
A groan sounded from the bed, and Percy blinked his eyes open. He was clearly disoriented, but most of the color had returned to his skin, and when Will placed a hand on his forehead to check his temperature, he noted that he no longer had a fever.
Will, on the other hand, felt slightly dizzy, and he knew that his own skin was gleaming with sweat now. Doing his best to hide the shakiness of his hands, Will reached for the canteen of nectar from earlier. Handing it to Percy, he said, "Here. Take a small sip."
Percy obeyed. He opened his mouth to say something, but before he had formed any audible words, Lee came rushing back into the infirmary, Chiron close on his heels in centaur form.
Percy managed to speak before anyone else did, surprisingly enough. "Chiron," he croaked, "Chiron. Luke...it was Luke."
Silence rang through the infirmary. Lee, Chiron, and Will all stared at Percy.
"Percy," Lee began tentatively, "you just got stung by something poisonous. In fact, I'm not sure how—"
Lee broke off and his gaze landed on Will, who smiled sheepishly and gave his older brother a weak wave in response. Outrage and concern battled for dominance in his gaze, but Percy was speaking again before he could do anything.
"It was a scorpion," he said dismissively. "Will healed me. The important part is that it was Luke—" Percy's voice broke on the Hermes counselor's name. Will quickly got him a glass of water, hoping that it would revitalize him a little. Then he cursed himself silently for not thinking of Percy's tendency to be healed by water before he used his powers. Percy accepted the glass. "Thank you, Will. But really," he turned back to Chiron, "Luke was the friend. H-he was the friend who the oracle said would betray me. He's trying to bring Kronos back," Percy finished in a whisper.
"Percy," Chiron said sternly, "these are serious allegations. Luke has been a trusted counselor for many, many years, and he's been a role model to nearly every demigod here—"
"The hellhound," Percy interrupted. "When I first came to Camp Half-Blood, at the end of my first capture the flag game. A hellhound was there; it attacked me. Monsters can only come into Camp if someone inside invites them in. Luke was the first person to ever try to befriend me here. He gave us winged sandals to use on the quest, but they nearly flew Grover into Tartarus. They were meant for me to wear—Luke admitted that to me, he admitted all of it! Please, you have to believe me. We have to do something!"
As Percy kept talking, Lee made his way over to Will. "Take a small sip," he urged Will, handing him a glass full of nectar. "We'll talk about this more later."
"Please, Chiron. I didn't want to believe it either, but it's true. He's left Camp. Iris Message him, I don't care, but you have to believe me. He tried to kill me." Percy sounded utterly defeated by the end of his monologue.
"He hasn't been the same."
Will jumped at the sound of Lee's voice, as did Percy. Chiron looked at him sharply.
"His quest changed him," Lee continued softly. "Ever since he came back, he's seemed more resentful, more bitter toward the gods. We all know that he's never exactly...liked... Hermes as a father figure. I don't think that what Percy is saying is very improbable," Lee concluded quietly.
Chiron looked back and forth between Lee and Percy. Then his eyes landed on Will. The old centaur must have figured out how, exactly, Will had cured the son of Poseidon. His eyes softened. "Go to your cabin, child," he said. "I know that that must have taken a lot out of you. Rest, now." He looked at Lee. "I will talk to Percy privately about this. If anyone comes into the infirmary, I will take care of them. You go take care of Will." Lee nodded, seemingly relieved to be able to do something useful again, and made his way over to Will. He crouched down so that Will could climb onto his back, and then he stood back up.
Before they were out the door, Chiron said, "Lee. Make sure word of Luke's possible betrayal doesn't spread. We don't want to cause unnecessary panic."
"I understand, Chiron," Lee promised.
As they left, Will distantly heard Percy ask, "Is Will okay? What happened to him?"
"Nothing that can't be fixed with a little rest," Chiron promised. "Will is young. Healing serious wounds like yours can sometimes...deplete his energy."
"Yup," Lee said, popping the 'p', "'deplete his energy'. You, bro are going to rest for at least twelve hours, no negotiations. I will put people on watch if I have to," he threatened.
Will only hummed in response. He was really tired. Maybe he should start using his powers more, so it didn't affect him so much every time. He'd talk to Lee about it in the morning, along with this whole Luke fiasco. Right now, it wasn't his concern. In his sleepy state, he had complete confidence that Percy, Chiron, and his big brothers would fix everything.
He didn't know it then, but he was wrong.
A/N: Thank you for reading!