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Title: A God Among Men – Life in the Kingdom of Demetria

Fandom: Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Heroes of Olympus; ancient Greece AU

Disclaimer: All rights reserved to Rick Riordan for he created the awesomeness that is Nico di Angelo. And everything else related to Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Heroes of Olympus. Aside from the Gods, they belong to the old Greeks. This fanfiction and its OCs on the other hand are entirely mine. No money is made with this, though reviews are more than welcomed.

Warnings: shounen-ai, gods, magic, fluff, kink for powers, worship, explicit intercourse, anal, oral, bondage, shoujo-ai, hetero, threesome

Main Pairing: Nico/Percy

Side Pairings: Reyna/Annabeth, Octavian/Luke, Ethan/Alabaster, Jake/Will, Frank/Hazel/Leo, Grover/Juniper, Malcolm/Katie, Chris/Clarisse, Charles/Silena, Jason/Calypso, Poseidon/Amphitrite | Poseidon/Sally, Zeus/Hera, Hades/Persephone, Ares/Aphrodite, Hephaestus/Aglaia, Nico/Drew (one-sided)

Percy Jackson Characters:

Thieves: Perseus Jackson, Luke Castellan, Cecil Rogers, Chris Rodriguez, Travis Stoll, Connor Stoll

Royals: Nico di Angelo, Bianca di Angelo, Hazel Levesque, Maria di Angelo, Drew Tanaka

Royal Advisers & Palace Servants: Jason Grace, Reyna Avila Ramírez-Arellano, Annabeth Chase, Malcolm Cage, Ethan Nakamura, Will Solace, Katie Gardner, Grover Underwood, Juniper

Palace Guards: Frank Zhang, Clarisse la Rue, Thalia Grace, Hylla Ramírez-Arellano, Kinzie Cohen, Zoe Nightshade, Phoebe Burge

Priests: Alabaster C. Torrington, Lou Ellen, Piper McLean, Silena Beauregard, Ella, Rachel Elizabeth Dare, Octavian Simmons

Blacksmiths: Charles Beckendorf, Leo Valdez, Jake Mason, Nyssa Black, Tyson

Godly Characters: Poseidon, Amphitrite, Triton, Demeter, Persephone, Hades, Hestia, Hera, Zeus, Hermes, Apollo, Artemis, Dionysus, Athena, Enyo, Ares, Aphrodite, Hephaestus, Aglaia, Feronia, Furrina, Laverna, Calypso

Summary: Perseus is a minor Sea God, son of Neptune and prince of the sea. And utterly bored. Gods, is he bored. Instead of staying bored under the sea, he decides to pose as a mortal and walk the Earth. Throughout ancient Greece, one small island kingdom in particular took to worshiping him, the Demetria Isles. So that's where Percy goes, to see what kind of people worship him.

He runs into interesting people. Lives with thieves, learns from priests and falls for the prince...

A God Among Men

Life in the Kingdom of Demetria

Chapter 10: The Princes of the Ocean

Nico rapidly banged on the door of the hide-out, praying that Percy was there. His heart was racing. He needed to explain himself somehow. Even though there was no way to explain himself. There were no good words that didn't make him look like a total idiot, or cause war.

"Wha—at do you want, princess?", drawled Cecil unimpressed.

"Percy", panted Nico, breathless after the run. "I need to talk to Percy."

"He's... on a date with you", pointed Cecil out, one eyebrow raised. "Why don't you know where Percy is? He should be with you. Good explanation, or I'll sic Luke at you."

"I... Never mind, I'll go and look for him myself", sighed Nico and shook his head.

He turned his back on Cecil and left, but that didn't make Cecil go back to his hammock to return to his nap. He rounded Travis, Connor and Chris up to go looking for Percy themselves. Their first stop were the forges, they knew that Percy liked to sit in and watch Leo create jewelry. The only thing they found there were Leo, Hazel and Frank, the latter two nicely curled around behind Leo, watching the jewelry-maker create a necklace. Cecil glowered.

"Your brother", grunted Cecil, looking at Hazel. "Did something to upset Percy and now he lost Percy. You know that if you do the same to Leo, not even being princess will protect you."

"What do you mean he lost Percy?", asked Leo confused and got up. "I literally only left the hide-out ten minutes ago. How did the prince lose Percy that fast?"

"Oh boy", sighed Frank. "Okay. Let's go and try help, mh?"

Travis and Connor gave him curious but approving looks.

/break\

Percy was trying to catch his breath as he paced in front of his own statue. Part of him wanted to go back to the hide-out, but he knew the others were already there. And right now he needed a moment to himself. The temple was perfect for that; it felt like home.

He just needed a moment to himself. That was all he needed. To think thoughts. Urgh.

Nico was engaged. To a mortal princess. Okay. Those things happened, especially among royals. He just didn't understand why Nico would have started dating him? Or was that what Nico thought was okay? That Percy could be a cute little side-piece, or what? Had all of Percy's speeches about Nico being free to chose who he loved fallen on deaf ears after all?

It wouldn't be a surprise. Percy was a god, he knew of humans. He knew that humans had a hard time learning something new. Athena had taught him this lesson repeatedly. Regardless what the gods did to teach humans something, the humans would always repeat their mistakes. Over and over and over again. It took too long for the truth to sink in and for thoughts to change.

Percy understood that, on a rational, abstract level. That just because Percy said a few pretty words, Nico's hard-wired brain wasn't going to reconnect all the synapses into realizing that Percy was right. Internalized fears were some of the hardest to overcome, Percy also knew that, he had learned that lesson from Aphrodite and her children – Harmonia, Deimos and Phobos.

He just didn't really understand where he stood right now. Where this was supposed to go. But it helped to sort his thoughts like that. Try to distinguish between the hallow, bad, awful feeling in his chest because he couldn't have the boy he wanted, from the knowledge he had. The knowledge he had tried to bury very deep and forget. Humans and how they acted. How this world worked.

"Percy! There you are. I've been... looking for you."

Percy sighed and looked up from the very interesting patch of marble he had been staring at for the past couple minutes. He had sat down at his own feet – the statue's feet. Nico stood in the entrance to the temple, looking like a very sad, abandoned puppy. Connor, Travis, Chris, Cecil, Luke, Octavian, Leo, Frank and Hazel were behind him. Percy frowned, confused by that.

"What... is going on here?", asked Percy, tilting his head some.

"We were looking for you", grunted Luke, glowering a little. "The prince showed up at our doorstep, apparently, and got everyone worried. Tav suggested that you might be at the temple."

"What happened, Perce?", asked Leo concerned, stepping up.

"Can... you guys give me and Nico some space?", requested Percy, frowning at them all.

They awkwardly shuffled away, out of hearing-range but staying in sight so they could step in if something happened. It was endearing. Percy was really going to miss them. His heart ached.

"Percy, I can explain", started Nico in a pleading voice. "I—I sent her the letter months before I even met you, I swear. I... I had forgotten all about it. I had proposed to her, as a political alliance. Because back then, my... my fear of who I am and what I wanted was at its peak. And I thought I would never be accepted by a single soul, I thought the only purpose I had was to become a good king to my people and I thought the only way to do that would be to marry someone worthy."

"And is she worthy?", asked Percy softly.

"I... Things between our kingdoms had been tense for many years now. Her kingdom is the harbor city closest to Demetria. It's... important. Good relations between our kingdoms would be mutually beneficial. They might finally put the threat of war aside and calm things down", continued Nico. "She is... a beautiful princess from a good family. Groomed to become a good queen to someone's kingdom one day. She has the potential to strengthen... me. She would be a worthy queen for Demetria, she would be a great ally in this partnership."

"So... she would be a good match", nodded Percy. "And... now? What do you want?"

"I... I want you", whispered Nico desperately, reaching out for Percy to hold his hands. "I... never felt that way with anyone before. You make me feel like nothing else aside from you and me matter. You make me feel like it's you and me and no one else."

"And that's not... good", whispered Percy in realization.

Nico averted his eyes, looking as heartbroken and sad as Percy felt. "It's not. Despite my parents' approval, despite the pretty words you said to me... I'm still the future king. I can never be the person that matters most to me. I will always have to put my people and their safety first."

"What does that mean? For us, Nico?", asked Percy and looked up into Nico's eyes.

"She... came here in good faith. And I meant it, when I proposed to her. Back then, it was the best future I could picture. Right now, the best future for me that I could picture... would be with you", whispered Nico, looking at Percy pleadingly. "I think... I think I'm falling in love with you, Percy. But if I turn her down – for the sake of... of a boy, at that – it would mean war for my country. My people would die a pointless death for the sake of my selfishness."

"You can't break the engagement", read Percy between the lines.

Nico averted his eyes, gritting his teeth. He had come to that conclusion pretty early on, but he had been denying it, even to himself. He knew that breaking the engagement would insult the princess, would insult Venia, and insulted, that kingdom would declare war. They would take the whole engagement as a mockery and Nico would cause the death of his people.

"I... don't see any way to break it without breaking the fragile peace between our people", confirmed Nico, unable to look at Percy. "I'm sorry. I made a mess. I don't know how to fix it. But... you made me... you made me forget my responsibilities. I—I'm not blaming you, Percy. I've never been happier than I was with you. But I have... things that are more important than my own happiness. And that is the safety and happiness of my people."

"I get it", nodded Percy, giving Nico's hands a squeeze.

"You... do?", asked Nico surprised and looked up.

Percy smiled, but the expression didn't even half-way reach his eyes. "I do. I know what responsibility is. I'm just... good at avoiding it. But maybe you're right. Maybe this... fun needs to end and we need to act like proper adults and face our responsibilities, mh?"

"What... do you mean?", asked Nico, frown etched into his features. "What... responsibilities?"

Percy knew a lost cause when he saw it. He even understood where Nico was coming from. He had made this decision in a moment of fear and now he had to face the consequences. Just like Percy had made his decision to run away in a moment of rebellious selfishness and it was now due-time to face the consequences. Percy also understood what Nico was saying. War was never nice. Percy wasn't a fan of war either. If there was something Nico could do to prevent it, he should. Percy knew what Nico thought he had to do and he understood that, at this point, he might even have to.

"I'm a prince too, Nico", chuckled Percy and tilted his head.

"I... uh... suspected that, somewhere in my mind, but...", drawled Nico stunned. "Where from?"

Percy took a step back and smiled, a nearly pained expression. "I'm the prince of Atlantis. I... didn't really give you my real name, you know. But I think... before I leave... I don't want secrets between us, not from my side at least. My name isn't Persephonus. It's Perseus. I'm the son of King Neptune and Queen Salacia, heir to the ocean and all its realms."

Taking another step back, Percy closed his eyes and allowed the godly glow to take over. He could hear the gasps from his friends lingering at the temple's entrance, some startled yelps from those who had come to the temple to pray and... a heavy sigh from Calypso. The high priestess had entered the temple to check on what was going on.

"W—What... you... but...", stuttered Nico stunned, staring at Percy.

Percy's clothes, the ones stolen and put together with a little help from the other street-rats, changed into shimmering azure-blue robes with silver embroidery, held together with a brooch of a purple shell with green pearls. The same green pearls decorated Percy's hait that now had more of a shine to it. His formally pale, nearly luminescent skin that had turned such a beautiful sandy-gold from the exposure of the sun was back to the pale glow it once had only that it now had a soft-blue hue to it. Those sea-green eyes sparkled, shining more than ever before. He looked exactly like the statue behind him. Now, with the matching skin-tone, Nico could finally truly see it. The features, albeit ten years older, were so similar. The shade of green in his eyes matched that of the marble statue, the black shiny hair, now the blue skin made it even easier to see the similarity.

"You're... You're a... god", whispered Nico in utter disbelief.

"I am", nodded Percy, a small, a bit more genuine smile on his lips. "See. This between us? Was never meant to last anyway, Nico. I have to return to the sea. I have to return to my family, my godly responsibilities. I was never meant to stay here. What we had... it was an escape, for the both of us, from our lives. Now... Now it's time to get back to the real world."

"You're a god", repeated Nico once more gulping hard.

Percy grinned a little amused as he stepped up to Nico and grasped him by the neck to pull him close and into one last kiss. One last kiss to remember Nico by. Someone in the background squeaked and he didn't know or care who it was. When they parted, Nico looked even more dazed. Percy stepped away from him, averting his eyes so he wouldn't have to look at Nico. Instead, he headed toward the exit where his friends stood, all gaping at him. He paused in front of Calypso, who stared at him with sadness in her eyes. He just smiled and shook his head.

"Do me proud, high priestess", requested Percy with a crooked half-grin.

"Of course, Lord Perseus", nodded Calypso with a half-bow.

Then, Percy turned toward his still slack-jawed friends, offering Luke, Connor, Travis, Cecil, Chris and Leo genuine smiles. "You were kind to me when you didn't have to and you gave me a home when I was lost. I'll never forget that. Thank you."

With those last words, Percy parted and left the temple, everyone too stunned to follow him.

/break\

Tyson didn't really understand it. They had found Percy, thanks to the fishes leading them on the right way. No one ever asked the smallest ones. They kept asking the sharks and merpeople adults, but Tyson? He asked the smallest ones because he knew what it was like to be small. To be overlooked. And they had sent them on the right track. Triton and Tyson had found Percy, had gotten to hug Percy... but they hadn't gotten to take Percy home with them. And Tyson really didn't understand why. They should have just left for home.

Triton had explained that Percy was happy here and had something here. That they would wait for Percy to sort things out. And okay. Tyson could do the waiting. Probably. After all, at least Percy had visited them every day so far and kept hugging Tyson, which was already super important. Still, Tyson would prefer to go back home, with both his big brothers.

"Perseus", stated Triton curiously, gaining Tyson's attention.

Tyson looked up from the hippocampus he was playing with to see Percy approach them. Only that Percy was not so weirdly human looking. His skin was bluish and he was wearing royal robes. Tyson's face brightened. That had to mean that Percy was going home with them, right?

"Big brother! Are we going home together now?", asked Tyson eagerly.

"Ye—eah, Ty. We are", nodded Percy with a small, sad smile. "Time to go home."

Triton regarded them skeptically, but he nodded briefly to himself and led the way.

/break\

"So... Nico was dating a god and dumped him in favor of Princess Drusilla", muttered Jason stunned, one arm wrapped tightly around Calypso's shoulders. "Can't believe it."

"Y—You should. We saw it", sputtered Hazel, eyes wide and stunned.

They had parted with Leo's group, everyone rather overwhelmed by the reveal. Nico had requested to be alone, so Hazel and Frank had decided to go with Calypso and talk to the others. Reyna and Annabeth were curled together next to Frank and Hazel, Ethan and Alabaster were on Calypso's other side. Hazel took a shaky breath and ran her fingers through her hair.

"And did he look... smitey?", asked Alabaster, earning himself a few dumb looks. "I mean. Gods don't particularly like being rejected. So, did he look like he wants to smite all of us?"

"He... looked sad", whispered Calypso softly, leaning more into Jason. "Heartbroken, as though he knew he had to leave something behind that... had the potential to mean everything."

"You must know the feeling. I mean, you're an nymph who was imprisoned on an enchanted island", pointed Annabeth out curiously. "That... it must have hurt."

"It did", confirmed Calypso, pain in her own eyes as she linked fingers with Jason. "It... leaves a bitter taste. And the taste will take some time to go away. But he's not vengeful."

"You say that with a lot of certainty", snorted Ethan amused.

"Because I know him", admitted Calypso as she looked up. "I'm sorry. I couldn't tell you. But... I knew who he was from the moment I saw him, because I've met Perseus before."

"Y—You knew this whole time?", stammered Frank in utter disbelief.

"You people forget that I'm more than just a nymph. I'm the daughter of a titan", supplied Calypso. "I'm... well-versed in the godly world. Yes, I knew. But he pleaded with me not to tell you. He just wanted to know what it's like to be... to be human."

"Why?", asked Alabaster stunned, getting elbowed by his lover. "Ouch, Ethan. Stop it."

"I know being a god sounds so fancy to you humans", chuckled Calypso fondly. "But it's not to the gods. And to Percy... to Percy, the human world had always held an appeal. Like a realm of fairy tales. He wanted to know what it's like to be human."

"And... now?", asked Jason with a frown, playing with Calypso's curls.

"Now he returned to the godly world", whispered Calypso, throat feeling tight. "And his... fairy tale came to an end. Not the end he had hoped for, but... not everyone finds their glorious hero."

Jason flushed a little as Calypso turned to smile at him like he meant the world. Ducking his head, he kissed his girlfriend, accompanied by the cooing sounds of their friends.

"Poor Nico though", sighed Reyna and shook his head. "He's... in quite the mess."

"That he is", grunted Annabeth in agreement, frown in place.

/break\

Hades sat there in stunned silence. He had already expected to come home to some kind of news, considering the ship from Venia that no one had explained to them yet. But when Persephone and Hades returned from Desponia, to be sat down by Nico for a serious conversation, things took quite the different turn than expected, if he was being honest. He turned to look at his wife.

Nico had given them a recap of the last three day. Starting with the arrival of Princess Drusilla of Venia, just before dinner, moving on to dinner itself and how Nico had thought their odd behavior was due to Percy and them disapproving of Nico's choice after all. And from there on all, everything apparently came apart by the seams. Nico got engaged, without telling anyone. Forgetting about it until his fiance arrived. Now he didn't know how to call the engagement off without causing war, leading to him breaking up with Percy to man up and own his mistake, which inevitably lead to the reveal of Percy being Lord Perseus, causing Nico to have a minor melt-down for dating a god.

Which, okay, they were definitely going to delay the 'You're a god and so are we' speech a little more, because apparently Nico was handling things not very well. He looked exhausted and shocked, completely overwhelmed. Persephone reached a gentle hand out to caress Nico's cheek.

"Sweetheart", started Persephone, unsure where she was going with this.

"No. I mean, even if you... if you truly approve of me being with a man... I was blind to think that this was all it would take. I am your heir and... and I am the future king", stated Nico firmly, looking at them square. "I... I made this decision in a moment of weakness, but I will own it. I will not back out and I will not cause our people any pain."

"Nicodemos", sighed Hades lowly. "You do not need to marry the princess. We can..."

"We can't, father. And you know that", interrupted Nico, holding Hades' gaze firmly. "Our army is not even half the size of Venia's. The king has disliked you for many years now, he has been waiting for a reason to declare war. If we – if I – insult him like that, then... Father, I know what I'm doing."

"I do not doubt that, son", sighed Hades as he got up and pulled Nico into a brief hug. "If this is the choice you make, we will support you. But know that what we told you was the truth. We would support you if you chose to be with another man."

"The 'other man' turned out to be a god and I still don't know how I feel about that", grunted Nico numbly as he buried his face in Hades' chest. "I need something normal. This... is. I think."

/break\

"My boy! Oh, my precious little boy!", exclaimed Salacia as she hugged Percy close.

"Sally, don't hog the boy", chided Neptune next to her, trying to get in on the hug. "It goes without saying that you are grounded for the next five-hundred years, but I'm glad you're safe."

Percy sighed as he was squished between his parents. Safe. Yes. Not happy, but safe.

"I'm sorry I worried you", whispered Percy softly. "I never meant to hurt you. I just... I just wanted to see the human world. I just wanted an adventure. I'm really sorry."

He clung onto them and closed his eyes, trying to shake the image of Nico and the princess off.

Author's note: I WARNED you that things would get worse before they get better. This? This is the "worse". I just couldn't in good faith write anything else. Nico wouldn't say "screw this" to his kingdom and responsibilities, Percy can not hurt his family any longer by being away. This was the only logical conclusion.

Which doesn't mean that it's all over. This is part 11 out of 15. There is still more to come. Some more pain next chapter, but I PROMISE this wasn't the end of Nico and Percy; Nico is not gonna marry Drew and have a dozen kids with her while Percy suffers heartbreak in the ocean. That's not the way I roll. For now, I leave you guys in pain, but I promise you it'll get better. Sorry.