PJatO || Nicercy || PJatO || Nicercy || A God Among Men || Nicercy || PJatO || Nicercy || PJatO

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 11: The Wedding of Demetria and Venia

Laverna, Feronia and Furrina exchanged concerned looks as they sat at Percy's bed. The king and queen had rejoiced when their son had returned. Atlantis threw a big gala and all the gods of Olympus were invited too. The only one not in a festive mood seemed to be Percy. So Salacia had gathered up Percy's three best friends and sent them up to Percy's room to cheer him up.

Laverna, as the goddess of tricksters and cheats, had engaged the other three in a card-game. But only Feronia and Furrina were really into it, Percy was just going through the motions. Out of the three, Feronia understood best what was going on – as the goddess of water but also freedom. Yet so did Furrina, to an extend, because her realm included travelers. They understood that Percy was seeking freedom, that he longed to travel and see the world.

"Perce...", started Laverna as she put down the poker-cards. "What's really bothering you?"

"It's a boy, isn't it?", asked Furrina gently. "Your behavior reminds me of Proserpina. She left, met Pluto, fell deeply in love with him, was dragged back home and grounded for half a year by Ceres and she was just moping the entire time. So. It's a boy, right?"

"Ye—eah", whispered Percy softly, looking up at them. "I just..."

"Tell us all about him", prompted Feronia excitedly before frowning. "Wait. Did he break your heart? Is that why you're so down? Why you returned? What happened?"

"He... didn't do it on purpose", whispered Percy with the smallest, saddest smile as he shook his head. "I'm not angry with him. I just... I mean, it was never going to work anyway. I had to return home. That was always inevitable. Listen guys, I don't... I don't feel like gossip, okay? I'll... I'll just go and see if Enyo and Ares already arrived. Maybe one of them is up for sparring."

"Su—ure, Perce", nodded Laverna with concerned eyes, watching him leave.

/break\

Nico was sitting between the feet of the statue of Lord Perseus. Percy. He still – even three days later – hadn't digested the fact that he had dated and dumped a god.

"Would you mind a piece of advise, Prince Nicodemos?", asked Calypso gently.

"I'm tired of advise", admitted Nico with a heavy sigh.

"I understand that", nodded the priestess with a small smile. "But... Are you truly committed to this wedding? Your... bride is putting together quite the spectacle, you know. The longer you wait, the harder it will be to bail out of it. So, are you truly committed to pulling through with this? To... never finding your own true love, never being in a loving relationship?"

"I've made my peace, High Priestess", stated Nico calmly. "You'll have to accept that."

Calypso sighed and turned her back on Nico. Straightening her posture, she made her way to the palace, sneaking in through the back-entrance. She had two gods to talk to and she always knew where to find Lady Persephone. The queen of the underworld sat beneath her pomegranate-tree, a lost look on her face as she was deep in thought. Calypso sighed as she approached the younger immortal. Blinking, Persephone turned to lock eyes with the Titaness.

"It's rare for you to visit", stated Persephone observantly. "So it must be about Perseus."

"And Nicodemos", added Calypso as she nodded slowly. "Are you sure you don't want to intervene? I know you're keeping a low profile here, to keep the island safe, but... what about keeping your son's heart safe? Marrying the princess won't make him happy."

"Not marrying her won't make him happy either though", pointed Persephone out with a knowing look. "He's... right. In a way. Even though Hades and I are glad to accept him and support him even if he doesn't take a female lover, a queen, the other kingdoms will still see it as a weakness. And... this mess he maneuvered himself into in his panic... I genuinely don't see a solution that doesn't lead to some kind of war, Calypso. I want to find a better solution, without revealing who we are and without it leading to war. I'm desperately looking for a better solution, but I don't have one."

"I... understand that", sighed Calypso, the look in her eyes heavy and sad.

"I'll try to talk to Percy tonight, there is a gala under the sea. Perhaps... if he were to come back... I don't know", sighed Persephone and shook her head. "I genuinely don't know."

"Tell him he's missed", smiled Calypso. "Not just by me. My new priests in training too."

Persephone raised both her eyebrows as she regarded the high priestess. "Who?"

"Travis, Connor and Cecil. They had a sudden burst of faith when they witnessed that Percy is a god", chuckled Calypso. "Luke and Leo have been at the temple frequently too."

"Understandable. Percy is truly... something else", agreed Persephone.

/break\

Leo sat in the corner, absentmindedly playing with Ella. Rachel had come to drop her off at home, just to find an assortment of very distracted street-rats in the hide-out. Instantly, she found her way toward her best friend's boyfriend. After all, Luke was their leader.

"So, Percy is a god. And Percy left. And Nico's getting married to Princess Drew. Sure. I'm gone for one weekend and all Hades breaks loose", grunted Rachel stunned. "Wow. Just... Wow."

"Ye—ep", grunted Luke, taking a long drink of his wine before passing it on to Rachel. "Here. Helps. At least a bit. Not with the whole this-making-any-sense part, but hey."

Rachel accepted the wine, but the frown won't leave her face. "Somehow... I'd have... hoped for a happier ending for them, you know? I mean... I don't know. Nico has potential. He could... go out, slay drakons and save dames and earn himself godhood, sweeping Lord Perseus off his feet?"

"That's a nice thought", whispered Luke with a small smile.

"This wedding is going to be a wreck", stated Rachel calmly.

"Speaking as a wise woman, or an oracle?", asked Luke amused.

"As a girl who has read enough romantic stories by now", replied Rachel, taking another drink.

"Ah. That", chuckled Luke and took the wine back from her. "Well, to the wreck then."

/break\

Percy was panting hard as he stood over Enyo. The goddess gave him an impressed and amused smile, just before her twin-brother attacked Percy from behind. Percy noticed from her look, so he just barely managed to dodge Ares. Making a back-roll, Percy reached for his sword and got it up just in time to block a hit from Ares. This was good. Hard training to the limit left his mind blank. That had always worked. He wasn't one of the best soldiers of Atlantis for nothing.

"You'll be a worthy general of your father's one day, brat", grunted Ares.

"Yes, he will. Now quit playing around, children. Time to get ready for the ball."

The three young gods turned toward Queen Amphitrite. The queen was leaning against the wall, an amused smile on her lips as she watched them. Enyo and Ares turned to exchange a look before leaving so mother and son could talk for a moment. Sally's eyes softened as she watched Percy and how he gathered himself off the ground. He avoided looking at her.

"I'm not angry with you, Percy", whispered Sally. "I understand it. I really do. I know your father is very... smothering. And if we had given you more free reign over where you go and what you do, you wouldn't have run away. But... something is wearing you down right now. Tell me what. Please, Percy. I'm your mother, I worry about you. Something happened wherever you were."

"I... met a boy. A prince. I... really liked him. Things didn't work out. The end", sighed Percy.

"That sounds more complicated than what you're saying", observed Sally.

"He's... now getting married to a princess so his kingdom won't get involved in a war and I kind of love that he puts the happiness of his people before his own but I also kind of hate that... that it can't just be him and me", admitted Percy, swimming up to his mom and accepting the hug she was offering, burying himself in the warmth and love of his mother's arms. "I just wanna abduct him and keep him down here under the sea where we could be happy without responsibilities?"

"Oh, sweetie", laughed Sally and shook her head. "I'm sorry this didn't work the way you wished it would, but... there are plenty of fish in the sea, you know?"

"I don't want a fish, mom", grumbled Percy. "I... really wanted him."

Sighing, Sally kissed his forehead. "Come on, let's get you ready for the gala."

/break\

Percy was spotting a thin-lipped smile as he was dancing with Apollo. The Sun God was whirling Percy around, smiling at his younger cousin. Percy liked Apollo, definitely one of his favorite cousins. Also definitely trying to cheer him up right now, which was sweet.

"I hear whispers of you having a male lover", commented Apollo after a few whirls.

"Oh my us, please tell me mom didn't set you up to give me like The Talk about gay sex", groaned Percy flustered, throwing his head back. "I will literally drown myself if she did."

"...No", laughed Apollo amused. "I heard it from the girls. You know Laverna and Hermes are close friends, she told Hermes and Hermes told me and said that I should talk to you because maybe you'd be more likely to open up to me since I'm such a literal sunshine."

"You are", noted Percy with a fond smile. "But I'm fine."

"You know, my lovers have a tendency of being turned into flowers", drawled Apollo, a far-off look on his face. "So, if you... I don't know, need gardening tips because someone turned your boyfriend into a flower, me and Persephone figured out real great ways to keep the plants healthy."

"He's... not a flower", chuckled Percy dryly. "He's... marrying a princess."

"Oh. Okay. I have something for that too. Constellations. Wonderful way of getting rid of a traitorous lover. Did that with Coronis", suggested Apollo brightly. "Generally, ask Hera for ideas on punishment though. She's the scary expert when it comes to those."

Percy snorted amused, a small but genuine smile on his face. "I'm not a fan of punishment. And it's not his fault. But I appreciate the input. I'll be fine, as mom said."

"Do you mind if we switch partners?", asked Hades with a pleasant smile.

Apollo gasped and batted his eyelashes at Hades as he took the underworld king's hand and allowed him to whirl Apollo off, leaving Percy and Persephone alone. She smiled as she rested a hand on Percy's shoulder, allowing him to lead her. He sighed at his cousin.

"If you want to offer advise or comfort, I will scream", warned Percy frustrated. "I'm tired of it."

"I'm here to ask what happened", supplied Persephone gently. "I mean, I know what happened from Nico, who is, by the way, heartbroken. And... when I look into your eyes, I see the same expression. You're suffering just as much as he is. And I can't quite... grasp that, sweetie."

"We'll be fine", chuckled Percy with a thin-lipped smile. "He made a grown-up, responsible decision and he will live with it. I'm... hurting, but I also respect his decision. You and me both know it's the best for your kingdom. He'll have a good bride at his side and will live a normal, respectable human life. Who knows, maybe in a century or two..."

"Oh, sweetie", sighed Persephone and kissed the top of Percy's head. "I like you far more than Drew. She's been a complete nightmare about this whole wedding, bossing everyone around. She's very selfish and rude and... while she has been groomed to be a queen one day, but... I'm not sure if she will be a good queen. The quality I admire in my son is that he puts the kingdom before himself. I see that same quality in you, Percy. When you... left, instead of throwing a fit or demanding to have Nico all to yourself. She... does not share this sentiment."

Percy hummed, frowning at that. He had hoped he at least left his Nico in good hands, that was all he wanted. For Nico to be taken care of and cared for. Sighing, he leaned more into Persephone and the two of them danced in silence until the song ended and someone else came to tap in.

"May I have this dance?", asked Poseidon, looking at his son.

Percy smiled faintly and accepted the dance. "I'm sorry I worried you."

"That is going to be your new 'hello' for the next century, isn't it?", chuckled Poseidon and shook his head. "My boy, you worried us a lot. But your mother made me realize that perhaps... it was not all your fault. Perhaps I was at fault for your behavior. Perhaps I... made you run away by being too overbearing. And I'm sorry for that, Percy. You're my son, I love you. I just... want you to be safe. It had been a few centuries since I last had a baby in the family before you came around and maybe I was a little overwhelmed. I just saw everything that ever went wrong with your older siblings and desperately tried to fix it all by controlling too much of you life. I'm sorry."

"So... I'm not grounded anymore?", asked Percy half-hopeful.

"Oh, you are so grounded for at least a century. Then, we might re-negotiate", grunted Poseidon.

"Okay, dad", sighed Percy in defeat, hanging his head.

/break\

At first, as Triton and Tyson returned Percy to them, Poseidon had been very pleased. The sea and storms around the world calmed as Poseidon calmed down. His chest swelled with pride and his heart with love for his children. He was proud at how well-behaved and obedient Percy was.

At least for about a week. Then he started growing suspicious. With the second week, Poseidon was officially tense and suspicious. He started getting concerned, because this wasn't Percy.

No sassy backtalking, no pranking, no attempts at sneaking out and getting into trouble.

Poseidon started watching Percy closely and he saw the boy absentmindedly sitting in the stables, taking care of the hippocampi, but without his usual warmth and happiness. Often, Percy would be sitting at his window, just staring out of said window, into the distance. And it was downright scary to see Percy be so still and subdued. He also ate less and he didn't take much joy from the things he used to love. This looked like Percy, but he didn't act like Percy.

"What is wrong with our son?", asked Poseidon with a frown as they got ready for bed.

Amphitrite hummed confused. "I think Proteus has just reached his parental limit. Theoclymenos and Eidothea have reached that rebellious phase and them hanging out with Apollo so much, for the sake of prophecies and oracles... It's exhausting, I understand Proteus there."

"Not that son", sighed Poseidon and shook his head.

"I think Triton is just in a bad mood about how busy Thanatos is", supplied Amphitrite.

"...Not that son either, love, are you doing that on purpose?", grunted Poseidon pointedly.

"Tyson is-", started Amphitrite before chuckling. "Okay, okay. Percy. Yes. I'm sorry. It's just... really very obvious, my love. And that you even have to ask..."

"Tell me, woman", requested Poseidon frustrated. "My son is not happy and I don't..."

"Since when has he been miserable?", asked Amphitrite casually.

"Since... he got home, but...", drawled Poseidon before heaving a sigh. "He truly cares about this boy, doesn't he? The prince? Oh, don't look at me so surprised, woman. You know no place on, above and below the Earth is as much into gossip as Olympus. I've heard about Percy's little adventure two weeks ago already. But I thought he would forget the human and move on. If anything, he keeps getting more miserable with every single day. My love, what do we do?"

Amphitrite looked up at him with soft, loving eyes. "I don't think there is anything we can do. The prince is getting married to a princess, to save his kingdom from a war. And Percy, he... is proud of his prince for doing that, for putting the kingdom before himself. We might have to give him... time. Just to get over it, to... heal and move on. It might take him some time though. A lot of time."

Poseidon frowned as he turned toward the window, seeing Percy sit in the coral reef garden they had, absentmindedly watching a squid. "...I don't want to have to watch him suffer."

/break\

Nico heaved a sigh as he stood in front of the mirror. He wore the traditional robes of his kingdom, with the traditional jewelry of Venia. Leo had forged it, but he had kept glaring viciously at Nico every time he showed up at the shop. Today was the day. After all the preparations and planning, today was the day Nico was going to get married to Drew. He had gone to the temples of Lady Aphrodite and Lady Hera, praying to find at least platonic love and mutual respect in this marriage. He hadn't been able to stop himself from visiting Lord Perseus' temple too, simply staring at the statue of his former lover with sad eyes. Nico's fingers found the brooch on his toga. A present of Percy's. Well, not the brooch, but the purple shell the brooch was made of. Percy had found it as the two of them were on their first date and Percy had given it to Nico with a bright grin. Remembering the purple shell brooch on Percy's outfit as the god had left the island, Nico realized why Percy had been so excited about it. Nico had requested Leo to create a brooch similar to Percy's.

"Nico? It's time", announced Frank with a concerned frown. "You coming?"

Nodding, Nico followed his friend outside. They reached the beach, where everything was set up for a large royal wedding. Everyone had worked hard for this. Smiling thin-lipped, Nico made his way over to Silena, who in her function as the high priestess of Aphrodite was going to officiate the wedding. She frowned at him, but he avoided her eyes. The whole kingdom was present – Venia's royals too and at least half of Cerelia and Desponia had come to attend the grand wedding. Nico straightened his back, ready to face his responsibilities and his future. His parents and siblings stood in the first row and like everyone else, they were watching him intensely. Part of Nico had insisted on the wedding being held at the beach in hopes that maybe, Percy would come and maybe everything would somehow work out. His eyes continuously drifted over to the ocean, until Drew came to stand next to him, smiling brightly at him. He knew she didn't care about him, she cared about the title, the throne. That had become abundantly clear in the past weeks. Which was okay, because Nico wasn't in for the fuzzy feelings either. They were using each other.

"We have come here today together-", started Silena.

She was interrupted by the roaring of the sea, startling not just her. Nico's heart leaped in hope. The sea rose into high tidal waves that crashed into each other in obscure and abstract patterns that did not look the least bit realistic. The sky above them darkened and ice-cold rain started hailing down on them. The king and queen tensed as they stepped up to Nico, together with Bianca and Hazel. Drew started yelling about her ruined hair and outfit. Nico watched the waves in anticipation. The waves were higher than the palace itself, crashing against one another and as the water returned to the ocean, it left behind a larger-than-life man. Black hair, black beard, sun-kissed skin wrapped in what looked like dark-blue silk. His eyes were eyes that Nico knew – that Nico would never forget. And in his right hand, he held a trident taller than the highest tower of the palace.

"Is... Is that... that is... he...", stammered Frank nervously, trying to hide Hazel behind himself.

"Lord Poseidon himself", whispered Hazel in awe, peeking over Frank's shoulder.

"But why? Does he want to smite Nico on Lord Perseus' behalf?", asked Bianca curiously.

"Prince Nicodemos", roared Poseidon, his voice rolling over them like ice-cold waves. "I have come for the prince of this country. Where is the prince?"

"I... I am here", stated Nico bravely but nervously as he stepped forward. "Lord Poseidon."

Author's note: I told you it would get worse before it gets better and that there would be another cliffhanger... But I promise, next chapter is gonna fix it all and Percy and Nico are going to reunite ;)