A/N: Part three, friends, in which Poseidon loathes Los Angeles and Hades compares his brother to algae, seaweed, and fish.

Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I am not Rick Riordan, so please, do not sue me.

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Chapter Three
Tempers Clash

Poseidon traveled as quickly as he was able from his palace to the shores of California. He was well aware of the tempest he was causing, but could not bring himself to care as he shrank to mortal size and his head broke the surface of the waves slamming against the shores. There was not a soul in sight, most people having fled to the safety of their houses as relief against the stinging rain and relentless surf.

It had been centuries since the seas were this disturbed, and the mortals had noticed. As he stalked towards DOA Recording Studios — Dead On Arrival, apparently Hades had found a sense of humor sometime in the last millennia — he glimpsed various news reports of baffled so-called "weathermen" completely stunned by the sudden ferocity of the sea.

"Meteorologists are currently baffled by the sudden change in the sea's behavior," one was yelling at him through the storm, holding the mike in one hand and her hood up on her head with the other as she was battered by wind and rain. The location read TAMPA BAY, FLORIDA. "Reports are saying similar storms have raged on every continent in the world, an event that hasn't happened at any known time in the last six centuries. There are over four hundred ships currently lost at sea — "

Her voice cut off as he got far enough away to not hear her anymore. Later, he would care about controlling the sea. Now, he had a demand for Hades, and by Olympus, Hades was going to grant it or he would flood this entire state.

When he arrived at DOA Recording Studios — Gods, he loathed Los Angeles — he threw the doors open, idly wondering who had done the stenciling on the glass doors. Charon was standing behind a desk in a nice suit and strange sunglasses, looking absolutely flabbergasted to see him there.

Shoving his way through the crowd, he came to a halt before the boatman and all but glared a hole through his skull.

"I demand to speak with my brother," he said gruffly. An especially large gust of wind shook the windows to punctuate his sentence, rain slashing against the glass so loudly it was nearly impossible to hear anything over the rage of the storm outside.

"I, uh, of c—course, L—Lord Poseidon," Charon stammered, forcing himself not to gape.

This had never happened before.

As a rule, the Big Three avoided each other's realms like the plague.

The boatman dared a glance out the doors, glimpsing the wrathful seas, and wondered what had happened to put the God of the Seas in such a rotten mood that he was taking it out on the entire planet.

Poseidon's eyes darkened, the god in question clearly not thrilled at being made to wait. Charon scrambled to the elevator, not even daring to ask for payment. The last thing he wanted was to be incinerated by Poseidon's trident. If that happened, he'd never get a raise.

"T—This way, Lord Poseidon," he squeaked, shoving spirits away as the waited for the doors to open. None dared to touch the God of the Seas. The doors slid shut, and in moments they were descending. Charon said nothing, and neither did Poseidon, but the Sea God's anger was palpable. If he was able, Charon was pretty sure he'd be shooting lightning from his eyes.

By the time the doors opened, Charon was extremely glad to be free of the confined space. He ushered Poseidon onto the boat and began to ferry him across as fast as he dared. He bowed to Poseidon as they reached the opposite shore, and without a word, Poseidon stepped to the ground and stalked towards the entrance of the Underworld.

No ghouls dared to question his presence or halt his advance.

Poseidon stalked right between the EZ DEATH line and a slower-moving line whose name he did not care about. His path took him right under Cerberus, who merely whined sharply in reaction to the fury he scented rolling off the Sea God in waves. He didn't dare look at any of the faces, fearing he would see Sally there and do something drastic.

Unhindered, he made his was purposely towards his brother's palace, his knuckles tightening. With a slight start, he realized he was gripping his trident so hard his fingers were aching. Up until that moment he hadn't even realized he'd been holding it.

The palace itself was dark and gloomy, but then, so was Hades. Poseidon was far from surprised.

He threw open the doors, took two strides forward, and bellowed, "HADES."

A moment later, Hades appeared through the doors to his left in his human-sized form, looking mildly surprised to see his brother in his throne room.

"Barnacle Beard," he greeted him coolly, "fancy finding you here."

"Save the insults, Corpse Breath, or I'll flood this entire cavern," Poseidon growled, turning murderous eyes on his brother. "I have a favor to ask of you."

"And by that, you mean demand, Kelp Brain. Am I correct?"

"Do not push me right now, brother," Poseidon warned darkly. "I am not in the mood for your games."

"Clearly, as your temper is currently dead-set on drowning the poor mortals," Hades shot back, raising an eyebrow. "So far you've added nine hundred and sixty-two souls to my lines. Do you have any idea how annoying dead people are? All they do is whine, 'no, it must be a mistake', and 'no, I'm not dead, let me go back' — "

"HADES," Poseidon cut him off, "I care little for your annoyances. I came here to ask you to grant Sally Jackson the peace of Elysium."

Hades' eyes narrowed. "And who, pray tell, is Sally Jackson?"

Poseidon faltered slightly, gripping the handle of his trident. "She is — was — the mother of my child," he admitted reluctantly.

Hades' eyes narrowed. "YOU BROKE THE OATH?" he roared, the volume all but shaking the walls.

Unfazed, Poseidon didn't even flinch. Hades was right to be angry, and he knew from experience that his brother needed to have a slight temper tantrum before being calm enough to listen to reason.

"WHY YOU INSOLENT, UNFAITHFUL, LYING PIECE OF ALGAE! I CANNOT BELIVE YOU AND ZEUS BOTH BROKE THE OATH, AND I AM THE ONLY ONE THAT HASN'T! I'M SUPPOSED TO BE THE INSOLENT ONE, YOU KNOW, WHY IS IT THAT I WAS THE ONLY ONE WHO WAS ABLE TO KEEP IT IN MY PANTS?! FOR THE LOVE OF OLYMPUS, I SWEAR I WILL BRING WRATH DOWN ON YOUR CHILD'S HEAD — "

"YOU WILL DO NO SUCH THING," Poseidon roared, cutting his brother off mid-sentence. Teeth gritted in a snarl, eyes flashing with fury, trident glowing, he stared his brother down. The ground beneath their feet quaked and rolled violently, making Hades pale even further than his normal shade. "You harm one hair on his head, and I will kill you," he threatened furiously.

Hades was taken aback by his brother's fury. Sure, Poseidon got angry sometimes, but this . . . this was different. This was far worse than anything he had ever seen before. It was a wrath barely contained, an animosity so fierce that it seemed to fill the air between them, an anger so violent that his brother was barely in control.

"Peace, Poseidon," Hades shouted as the walls and floors quaked even worse. Relief filled him as the shaking stopped. Through narrowed eyes, he studied his brother the Earthshaker. Poseidon's eyes were nearly black they were so stormy, his chest heaving and nostrils flaring with each breath. With his teeth gritted in a snarl, he looked positively feral. "By Olympus, what is wrong with you?" he barked irritably.

"Zeus," Poseidon bellowed, slamming the butt of his trident onto the floor. Hades winced as the tile cracked with a sound like a gunshot.

Hades scowled. "What about that good-for-nothing Air-For-Brains? Did someone finally pull the lightning rod out of his ass?" he demanded, watching as Poseidon's hands started to shake. He had never seen Poseidon this . . . out of control. It was unsettling.

An unknown emotion swirled in his chest at the sight . . . it felt strangely like . . . sympathy? Worry? Bah. He was no good with emotions.

In a voice ripped from his chest and heavy with agony, Poseidon moaned, "He killed her."

Stunned, Hades watched his brother sink to his knees on the floor, one hand gripping his trident like a lifeline, the other covering his eyes as his shoulders shook. For the first time in his extremely long existence, he was at a loss of what to do. Poseidon was as steady as a rock. He never faltered, never broke, was steadfast and had an annoying habit of taking the entire blame every time something went wrong. Yet here he was, falling to pieces right in front of him.

Shuffling forward, Hades hesitantly couched beside his brother and reached out to awkwardly grasp his shoulder, simply staying put while Poseidon sucked in gulps of air, struggling to control himself.

"Who killed her?" he wondered quietly, in an uncharacteristic show of, well, brotherly-ness.

"Zeus killed her, Hades," Poseidon said in a scratchy whisper, not lowering his hand from his eyes. "He struck her down with his master bolt. She was right in front of me. I wasn't fast enough."

Bitterness and anger swelled in his chest as he remembered Maria di Angelo's gentle beauty and how Zeus had ripped her from his life in the same fashion. He was thankful that Nico and Bianca were safe in the Lotus Hotel, even if he missed them terribly. Had he not been there, Zeus would have killed both his children as well, simply because they were his.

"I know how . . ." he trailed off uncertainly, not sure how to phrase it. He didn't do feelings. He didn't know what to say to help.

"I am sorry that Zeus did what he did to Maria," Poseidon said, still in that scratchy voice. "He had no right to take someone you loved from you like that."

Hades bit back his sarcastic retort, sensing it was not the wisest attitude with his brother in this current state. He had loved Maria, though he'd have rather dove into Tartarus than admitted it.

"Not exactly like him to go around blasting his own kids with lightning, is it?" he said instead, the bitterness and hate coming through in his tone of voice. "He just has to go around trying to murder ours instead," he added darkly.

Poseidon said nothing, merely nodded jerkily in agreement.

Hades took the fact that his shoulders had stopped shaking as a good sign.

Finally, Poseidon lowered his hand and looked at him, face-to-face. "We have had our quarrels in the past, Hades," he said softly, "but I am asking you. Make sure she gets Elysium." He paused, swallowing heavily before softly taking on, "Please."

With a sigh, Hades whipped out a black iPhone and started scrolling down the list of deceased awaiting judgment that Thanatos updated daily. It only took a few moments to find her name.

"She awaits the judges," Hades admitted, "but I know from her past that she deserves it, Poseidon." When his brother opened his mouth, he hastened to cut him off and quickly said, "I will mainstream her application along, though. She'll be in Elysium by this time tomorrow, I swear on the Styx."

Feeling an uncharacteristic swell of gratitude for Hades, Poseidon reached out to grasp his brother's shoulder. "Thank you," he said gravely and with utmost sincerity.

Hades was unable to speak, so he merely nodded. An odd feeling swelled in his own chest, a strange mix of emotions he hadn't felt in centuries. It almost felt like . . . gratitude, maybe relief. Finally, one of his family understood how he felt. It was a strange sensation, crouching beside his grief-stricken brother on the floor of his palace in the Underworld, of all places. And with neither of them threatening death or dismemberment on the other, no less.

Clearing his throat loudly, Hades stood. He was relieved when Poseidon did the same, looking remarkably calmer than he had been upon his arrival. Previously black, his eyes were now back to their usual stormy green-blue, albeit a bit darker than they were normally.

"Your child?" Hades questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Safe. Hidden from Zeus, deep in the sea where his bolt cannot reach him."

Hades nodded.

Poseidon rubbed a hand over his face. "What of your children, brother? I never asked what became of them," he realized, suddenly feeling exhausted.

"Safe as well. Hidden where he cannot get them."

Nodding, Poseidon drew himself up to his full height and squared his shoulders. "I will not forget what you have done for me today, brother," he said formally. "From this point on, any children you may have in the centuries to follow will be able to safely pass across my seas. Provided, that is, they are not starting a war or attempting to slaughter one of my children."

Hades nodded and said simply, "A fair exchange." He watched as Poseidon turned to leave and called, "Poseidon."

Turning back around, Poseidon regarded his brother. "You are not going to lock me in a prison cell or pitch me into Tartarus, are you?" he wondered, the usual sarcastic bite back in his tone.

"Hardly," Hades snorted. "Tartarus would spit you right back out, Fish Breath." Poseidon glared at him, and he simply smirked, glad they were back to their usual bickering. The smirk faded as he grew serious. "I just . . . I wanted you to know that I will tell no one of your child's survival. Your secret is safe with me." By the end of his sentence he was grimacing; the words had felt like acid coming from his mouth. He loathed feelings.

"And yours, with me," Poseidon said quietly.

"You do realize, of course, that if he is the prophesized child, he could be the downfall of us all?"

Poseidon said nothing.

"Keep a close eye on him, brother," Hades advised.

"I will." He flicked his gaze upwards and sighed. "I must return to the seas, brother, before the both of us say something sappy that we regret and will result in us mocking each other for eternity."

"I thought we did that already," Hades smirked.

Rolling eyes with a faint smile, Poseidon sighed, "Farewell."

Hades nodded agreement, and watched as his brother made his way back across the Underworld towards the exit, pausing to give Cerberus a pat on each of his heads before fading from sight.

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E/N: Bahahaha, I love Hades and Poseidon. Definitely two of my favorite gods, probably followed closely by Apollo and his hilariously awful haikus…

Reviews are love ;)