Chasing Origins: Sam's Story

by Takara Phoenix

Sidestory/Prequel to "Chasing Fireflies" - The story of Sam Raser, son of Ares. His feelings for Trend, the son of Athena, how he became one of the greatest heroes since the Seven. His family-life and friendships, as well as his hardships and love-life. Trend/Sam pre-slash, Sam-centered cuteness, fluff, angst and h/c

4. The Dark Year

PJatO || Tram || PJatO || Tram || Chasing Origins: Sam's Story || Tram || PJatO || Tram || PJatO

Title: Chasing Origins: Sam's Story – The Heart of War

Fandom: Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Heroes of Olympus

PJatO 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, of course. They are all copyright by the old Greeks. This fanfiction on the other hand is entirely mine. No money is made with this, though reviews are more than welcomed.

Warnings: shounen-ai, fluff, family, explicit intercourse, anal, abuse, rape (mentioned), hetero

Main Pairing: Trend/Sam

Side Pairings: Leroy/Sam, Erik/Sam, Jonas/Sam, Chuck/Sam, Trend/Others, Trend/Derek, Sander/Derek, Sander/Jonas, Sander/Stella, Vic/Derek, Erik/Derek, Jonas/Derek, Marshall/Sara, Herc/Thea, Loki/Blance, Liam/Malene, Nico/Percy, Chris/Clarisse, Ares/Aphrodite

Percy Jackson Characters: Perseus Jackson, Nico di Angelo, Clarisse la Rue, Chris Rodriguez, Malcolm Cage, Will Solace, Jason Grace

Godly Characters: Ares, Aphrodite, Chiron

Own Pegasi: Trickster (Sander), Fighter (Sam), Rush

Own Characters: Samuel Elijah James Raser III (Ares), Trend Ignatius Austin (Athena), Charles Smith (Athena), Marshall Mikaelson (Enyo), Erik Anderson (Enyo), Jonas Meyer (Enyalios), Derek Rhys (Demeter), Rainbow Jordan (Iris), Melissa Montgomery (Dionysus), Victor Kruger (Hephaestus), Stella Ribeiro (Aphrodite), Takara Phenia Thompson (Trivia), Loki Murdock (Mercury), Blance Lamour (Chione), Sara Mers (Mars), Joanna Foxx (Vulcan)

Sam's Family: Samuel Elijah James Raser II, Jolene Raser, Liam O'Riley, Malene O'Riley, Selene O'Riley, Lene O'Riley, Leah O'Riley, Lara O'Riley

Own Characters of the Next Generation:

Nicercy: Bianca Maria 'Bia' di Angelo, Hades Poseidon 'Donny' di Angelo

Chrisse: Calandra 'Cally' Rodriguez, Chrysander 'Sander' Rodriguez, Charisma 'Carry' Rodriguez

Pipabeth: Theadora Tiphane 'Thea' McLean

Matie: Amarilla 'Amy' Cage

Jayna: Hercules 'Herc' Grace

Frazeleo: Nicole Esperanza 'Nico' Zhang

Summary: This is Sam's story, his origins leading up to 'Chasing Fireflies'. The first time his mom told him that he was a son of Ares, how he moved to New Athens and met his biggest hero, Percy di Angelo. His relationship with Leroy and those that followed. How the scrawny boy turned into the biggest hero of their generation. His first quest with Sander and how he got the Heart of War from Aphrodite. How he first met his pegasus Fighter and how the four Sons of War became friends.

Chasing Origins: Sam's Story

The Heart of War

Fourth Partition: The Dark Year

/October 2026 – Honolulu, Hawaii\

A bright smile lit Sam's face up as he shielded his eyes from the sun. Leah and Lara, his youngest cousins, were sitting next to him, building a sandcastle. The four-years old twins were enthusiastically at work, giggling and occasionally throwing a handful of sand at their older cousin. Sam rolled his eyes affectionately and ignored them.

"Hey, pipsqueak", grinned his oldest cousin Selene as the girl sat down next to him. "What's up?"

Sam shrugged and wrapped his arms around his knees, staring out at the blue, blue water. His ma and aunt were chasing a giggling seven-years old through the water, little Lene waving her arms wildly around as she got chased by the two adults. Sam cocked his head thoughtful.

"What's wrong, pipsqueak? You've been deep in thoughts since we arrived here", frowned Selene.

Her aunt had invited them over to Hawaii because she was stationed there and it was a school break. Sure, Sel was a little sad that her dad couldn't make it – but he had some important lead on his search for his brother, or that was what he had said. So Malene had grabbed their four children and fled to Hawaii so she won't have to watch over the four rascals on her own. At first, Sel had been overjoyed that Sam would come too. She hadn't seen him in way too long and even though he was an annoying, little brat, he was her annoying, little brat. Life was boring, being the oldest of four daughters. And if she had thought Sam had been boring, the girls were even more boring. And even younger. Sam was at least only three years younger than her and he was a boy. That was more fun than all her little sisters. But Sam had been with his head in the clouds since they had arrived.

"It's nothing, Sel", mumbled Sam with a frown and shook his head.

"Right", snorted Selene and rolled her eyes, hitting him upside the head. "Now tell me."

"Do you... have a boyfriend?", asked the son of Ares softly.

"Huh?", asked the fourteen-years old girl. "Sure. I mean, he's like the love of my life. Why?"

"I... think I want a boyfriend too", whispered Sam barely audible. "I think... I'm g—gay."

"Oh", nodded Selene thoughtful. "Does auntie Jolly know?"

"No, ma doesn't", mumbled Sam. "You're the first, aside from my friends... I just... don't know..."

"Cool", grinned Selene, nudging her cousin. "I have a gay baby bro. That is going to be fun."

Selene shot up from the ground and grabbed Sam's hand, pulling him along toward the beach. Yelping surprised, Sam stumbled after his cousin. Once they reached their mothers, Sel pushed her cousin over at Jolene before grabbing her mom's and her sister's hands.

"Ma, Lene, come! Let's help the twins with the castle!", declared Selene with a broad grin.

"What... was that?", asked Jolene confused, staring after her nieces and her sister.

"Uh... I think Sel wants me to talk to you, ma", mumbled Sam unsure.

"Ah. Is this about whatever is on your mind that keeps you so distracted?", asked Jolene softly and sat down in the shallow water, beckoning him over. "Now, what's wrong, my boy?"

"N—Nothing is wrong, I just...", started Sam, running his fingers through his hair. "I..."

"You?", prompted Jolene, raising one eyebrow. "Now come, you know you can tell me everything."

"I know, ma", mumbled Sam and averted his eyes. "I just... Grandpa said... it's wrong... and..."

"Now listen to your ma", ordered Jolene and straightened her back. "Your grandpa is a wise man, but he's also a stubborn bastard in many aspects. Whatever this is about, your grandpa doesn't have to be right about it. He's not always right. Now tell your ma what's bothering you, my boy."

"I'mcrushingonafriendofmineandhe'saguy", rushed Sam out and took a breath. "I—I'm gay."

"Gay?", repeated Jolene a little surprised. "Well, that is... quite the surprise. And I always thought you'd leave a trail of broken-hearted girls behind. It seems you'll leave a trail of broken-hearted boys behind then, mh? And who is that guy-friend of yours you're crushing on, Sammy?"

She nudged him curiously, a kind smile on her lips as she wrapped one arm around his shoulders. He relaxed relieved and leaned into his mother's embrace, snuggling up to her warmth. A small blush spread over his cheeks as he contemplated telling her.

"I told you about my friends, right? You remember?", asked Sam softly.

"Marshall, Trend, Sander and Derek, right?", smiled Jolene and nodded. "Well, which one is it?"

"I... uhm... T—Trend", confessed the embarrassed son of Ares. "He's really clever and kind and so, so handsome! Like, with golden hair and tall and all, like a prince out of one of the fairy tales you used to read to me! I really, really like him. And he's so nicely trained, he's really nice to look at!"

Jolene grinned amused at the dedication and passion in her son's voice. "What about him?"

"I don't know", frowned Sam thoughtful. "I mean, he's never shown interest in anyone and I don't know if I like-like him. I just... really like watching him train. Like, really-really."

"You're just too adorable", laughed Jolene and kissed the top of Sam's head. "Now come, let's have some pizza with the girls. And ice-cream. And then you tell me more about this Trend."

"Okay!", agreed Sam enthusiastically and followed his ma, filled with relief.

/May 2027 – Fortuna Fair, New Athens\

"I told you I don't have money for this!"

"And we told you this is our treat", chuckled Trend amused, ruffling the soft, peanut-colored hair.

Sam huffed and crossed his arms over his chest. Marshall and Sander on either side of him laughed amused and wrapped their arms around his shoulders. The smaller demigod glared up at them. He didn't want the others to pay for him, but he had spend all the 'spare money' – aka the money he won't need for food and clothes and books – on a plane ticket to Dublin after his grandpa had had a heart-attack last month. It hadn't been serious, lucky enough, and his family had assured him he wouldn't have had to come. Still, his grandpa was his grandpa, so of course he had to see for himself. But that resulted in him not having money to spend now and unfortunately enough, the Greeks had adapted a Roman tradition, this year for the very first time. An annual fair.

"And I told you that you don't have to", grunted Sam and rolled his eyes.

"But it's the fair! It's like the very, very first fair Major Chase has put together, there is no chance we're going to miss it!", objected Sander, waving his arms around widely.

"You could have gone without me", tried Sam, growing more and more annoyed by this.

"But there's no chance we would have left you home alone!", stated Sander stubbornly, shaking his head. "We're the Sons of War, we're like—a package deal, right? So we are going to enjoy the new annual Fortuna Fair! And if it means I'll spend my pocket money on cotton candy for you, then that's that. I want all of us to have fun. And since you won't even spend the summer with us this year, this is the least we have to do together. Now shut up, Sam."

Heaving a sigh, Sam leaned up and pecked Sander's cheek. The idiot was too sweet sometimes. Though he was right. A fair was just no fun when you had no money to spend. So he unwillingly accepted the fluffy, pink cotton candy Sander just bought him. Marshall behind them chuckled fondly as he watched them. The fair was giant. And colorful. And loud. Sam loved it.

"So... Why didn't your flower friend come with us?", grunted Trend, sounding just a little irate.

"Derek isn't here, because, like San just said, we're the Sons of War and I figured we should do something as just us again. I've been dragging Derek around for months now and don't think I didn't notice the... vibes between you guys. You don't like him", huffed Sam.

"It's less... us not liking him, but more like him not liking us", pointed Sander out with a frown.

Even Marshall nodded gravely at that. The son of Enyo had noticed that Derek could glare quite nastily at Sander and Trend whenever either of the boys was too close to Sam.

"Now, where do we start?", asked Trend thoughtful, looking around, changing the topic.

Though Sam answered that question without even intending to, because his eyes locked onto something that actually made him squeal in delight. The other three boys jumped slightly in surprise and turned to take a closer look at whatever may cause Sam to make such a sound. A shooting range with stuffed toys. The boys cautiously approached it and nearly instantly did Sam's hands grab for the relatively large, stuffed, red horse. While Sam was so engrossed with the very fluffy pony – a unicorn, as they could see now that they were closer to it – his three friends exchanged challenging looks. The same thought, the same idea, crossed all their minds at once. A mirrored smirk spread over all their lips as they each thrust money onto the counter, startling the owner and Sam alike.

"Three shots", declared all three in unison, Sander's and Trend's eyes sparkling with the challenge.

"What? No", protested Sam with a frown. "I can accept unhealthy food, but you're not wasting your money on stupid stuff like that! Besides, you can't really win those games anyway! Especially not when a son of Hermes is the owner! No offense, Mister Rodriguez. No, you're not doing this!"

Chris behind the counter smiled amused at that and took the money from the boys, eying his son and his son's friends. He had grown to like the three boys, they were good for Sander. While Cally had gathered her little group of girls – Bianca di Angelo, Theadora Chase and Rainbow Jordan – his son had always lacked closer friends. Sure, both twins had plenty of admirers and followers because of their reputation and cunning ability, most of all the quests they had accomplished with Bianca. But Sander had never really made close friends, aside from his best friend Hercules Grace. Since Herc was Roman though, the boys didn't see each other all too often. So it was a relief to see Sander spending time with people outside the immediate family and his sister's circle of friends.

"Well, well, try your best, boys", smiled Chris amused and leaned back. "And contrary to Sam's belief, this game is not manipulated. No definite losing. Or winning, just because you're my son."

Sander nodded sharply and looked at his dad before aiming (and praying). Sander was a horrid shot. He was brilliant with a sword, mediocre with a bow and clever with a knife, but a gun, even just a toy-gun? He missed all three times horribly – hitting his dad with the second one even. Sam, Trend and Marshall had the time of their lives laughing their asses off.

"Oh, shut up and do it better", pouted Sander and crossed his arms over his chest.

"You need to hit all three to get the unicorn. It's one of the big prizes", added Chris as he ruffled his son's hair. "And you may start looking into shooting lessons, kiddo. I didn't know you were capable of failing that hard. Better not tell your mom about this, mh?"

Marshall smirked amused as he took the gun. Sam wrapped one arm around Sander's shoulders, silently saying thanks for trying. The older brunette was still pouting, but he directed his attention to Marshall. The tall boy was highly concentrated with each shot, but sadly enough, he missed the last one. Chris smiled kindly at the big guy and motioned to the range of things he could chose from. The son of Enyo looked unhappy, at least until he spotted a green bear and chose it.

"Wouldn't have thought you'd like that", grinned Sam amused, though the grin slipped from his lips as Marshall thrust the bear out at him. "Dude, I want the unicorn. I'm not a little girl, I'm not into adorable, fluffy toys and stuff. I just like horses. And red. Especially red horses."

"But you'll stay in New Rome this summer, right? So you can... take it with you, to give it Sara", grunted Marshall, looking mildly embarrassed. "She mentioned that bears are her favorite animals and green is her favorite color... She may... like it."

"I think Marshall may like her", observed Trend amused and cocked one eyebrow as he took the gun to take his turn. "And here I thought you were only so considerate of her because she had been practically glued to Sam last summer, though now I suspect other reasons for that."

"It's not like that", grunted Marshall, obviously grumpy. "She was just... very sweet."

"She was like the exact opposite of you, Big Silence", snorted Sander wide-eyed. "I mean, did you even exchange any words at all? Sure, she talked like all the time, but did you legitimately say anything to her in return? Did you even get to say anything?"

"Well, she was rather busy... talking", was Marshall's only reply. "But that was kind of nice."

"How cute, Marshall got his girl a stuffed toy. What's next? Chocolate? Flowers?", smirked Trend, punctuating each of the 'goods' with a perfectly targeted shot. "Or an engagement ring right away?"

With that, he set the third and last perfect hit. Sam nearly fell off the counter he had been sitting on, while Sander stared wide-eyed and just a little enviously. Marshall was too busy being flustered and too cool to be impressed by that. He had known that Trend was a perfect shot. Chris grinned amused and clapped his applause before freeing the red unicorn from its bonds and handing it over to Sam. With the most brilliant smile possible did Sam accept the unicorn, gasping at just how soft and fluffy the red unicorn with the green mane really was. While hugging the unicorn tightly, Sam threw himself at Trend, hugging the blonde just as tightly and nearly throwing him off-balance.

"Thank you", grinned the happy son of Ares, kissing Trend's cheek. "I'll take good care of Iggy."

"Iggy?", repeated Trend a little confused.

"Yep. Short for Ignatius", explained Sam with a mischievous grin.

"Give me back that unicorn. You don't get it if you're being a brat", deadpanned Trend.

"Aw, don't be such a spoil-spot", chided Sam amused. "Still... Thanks. Really. He's awesome."

The son of Athena blushed a little and coughed to cover his embarrassment as he looked at a happy Sam, hugging the unicorn he had just become the namesake of. Shaking his head, he wrapped one arm around Sam's shoulders and steered him off the boot, followed by Sander on Sam's other side and Marshall on Trend's other side, all four of them looking around the aisle for more fun.

"Where did you learn to shoot like that though?", asked Sander confused.

"My dad has always been a gun-freak, having a whole collection. He taught me how to clean and respect a gun practically before I could walk", shrugged Trend casually.

Marshall snorted at the blonde's smug casualty, but he refrained from saying something. Instead, he steered the other three boys over to a food stand to satisfy the rumble of Sander's stomach in what was the start of a long evening of more games, bumper cars and a ride on the Ferris wheel (for everyone aside from Trend, who pointed out his dislike for heights). The four boys had more fun that night than in the whole last summer and Trend, Marshall and Sander really hoped that would make up for the summer Sam was about to miss. All the while, Sam didn't let go of Iggy.

/June 2027 – Camp Jupiter, New Rome\

Sam grinned broadly, clinging to Fighter's neck as the two of them slowly descended on a wide space in the middle of New Rome. He already saw the wildly waving and nervously jumping ginger waiting for him. Next to her stood a highly amused, very tall, dark-skinned girl.

"Sam! Sam! You're finally here!", exclaimed Sara excited and nearly threw him off the pegasus.

"I'm like half an hour early to what I told you", snorted Sam and rolled his eyes.

"Oh, I have to show you so many things and introduce you to so many people!", grinned Sara.

"How about you start with the laughing girl next to you?", asked the son of Ares amused.

"Right!", nodded Sara so vigorously that her head looked as though it would fall off. "That's my bestest friend in the world! Joe! She's a daughter of Vulcan, which is like Hephaestus just Roman and she's a tinkerer and makes the most awesome gadgets and such!"

"Hi, I'm Joe. You must be Sam", nodded the dark-skinned girl, holding her hand out. "You will not believe just how much Sara has been talking about you since autumn. Like, every second of the day. So... I have expectations you'll have to live up to, Greek boy."

"Okay", grinned Sam amused and shook her hand, wincing at her forceful grip. "And who's this?"

He stared past the two girls at the other two teens. One looked mischievous enough for Hermes, with black hair and dark, blue eyes, sun-kissed skin spanning over tight muscles. The other was a girl so pale that she looked more like a ghost, her eyes like two crystals of ice and her hair white as snow. The glare she leveled at him was no less icy than her eyes suggested.

"Those are our praetors, our leaders", explained Sara, waving widely into their directions.

"I'm Loki Murdock, son of Mercury. And this is Blance Lamour, daughter of Chione", introduced the mischievous boy. "We're the praetors, the... equivalent to Calandra Rodriguez and Bianca di Angelo, you could say. The leaders of camp. Though our Roman camp is a little different from what you're used to, Samuel Raser. Our 'cabins' aren't split by godly parent. You'll need to be invited into one of the cohorts and even then, you'll only be a probatio, which basically means you still need to prove yourself worthy of being part of our society."

"Okay... And... can I be in Sara's cohort?", asked Sam shyly.

"Sara and Joanna already pleaded for you to join. For now, they're... basically, they're responsible for you", replied Loki with a short nod. "Go with them and they will show you everything. We simply came to introduce ourselves, because we have the highest authority around here and you are, albeit a probatio, an honored guest, so if you have problems, feel free to come to us."

"Okay, thanks", nodded Sam, trying to memorize the weird words.

"We're in cohort three", stated Sara eagerly. "You'll love our centurion, she's really awesome-"

"A centurion is basically our cabin head", explained Joe patiently.

"-she's a daughter of Trivia, a witch! A real, proper witch! That is so, so great! She can do all those magic tricks, like real magic, no bunny-out-of-the-hat tricks!", continued Sara unfazed.

They reached a building which Sam suspected to be that cohort-thing Sara had been talking about. In front of it stood two girls, one a pretty yet tomboyish Latina, the other purple-haired. Sara came to a screeching halt in front of them, so abrupt that Sam crashed into her.

"Ouch", complained Sam and rubbed his forehead.

"Sorry, bro", grinned Sara sheepishly before turning to the girls. "Look, look! He's Greek!"

"I'm half Greek", grunted the Latina and rolled her eyes. "I know plenty of Greeks. Why is this one any special? He doesn't look all that special. Looks like a pretty boy. Aphrodite?"

"Ares", growled Sam defensively and straightened his back.

"Ah, yes, that sounds like the spark of Ares", grinned the girl. "I'm Nico Zhang, legacy of Hephaestus and Mars. Centurion of the fifth cohort. Nice to meet you."

"And this is our centurion! Takara Thompson, daughter of Trivia", exclaimed Sara.

"Right, uhm, nice to meet you", smiled Sam politely. "But can we cease the introductions for now? So many names and titles and... new vocabulary. My brain needs a break."

"You're my new probatio", observed the purple-haired girl interested. "Well, let's see how well you'll fend. Come inside and get settled first. Dinner later."

Sam nodded relieved and followed Joe and Sara inside, his head swirling. He barely got to sit down on a bed as he noticed the still with energy bouncing daughter of Mars. Right, he still had something for her. Grinning broadly, he opened his backpack and pulled the fluffy, green bear out to present it to her. At first she cocked her head confused, until he nodded at her, indicating that yes, it was for her. And then she squealed, more high-pitched than Leah and Lara when they got ice-cream, which so far had been his measurement of ouch-glass-will-break.

"You got me a teddy!", yelped Sara happily, now also hugging Sam. "Thank you, thank you, tha-"

"No, no, wait", interrupted Sam amused. "It's actually not from me. Marshall won it at the Fortuna Fair last week and told me to give it to you. So... it's from Marshall, not from me."

"Oh...", mumbled Sara, blushing faintly as she stared down at the bear.

"Marshall?", echoed Joe intrigued and leaned into Sara's personal space. "Who is this Marshall and how come I haven't heard anything about him yet? She talked so much after you returned from the Greeks, about so many different people. But this Marshall..."

"T—There isn't anything to say about him", yelped Sara, her blush intensifying. "Nothing at all!"

"He's a close friend of mine", supplied Sam. "Son of Enyo. Really strong and handsome and kind."

"Oh, that sounds nice", smirked Joe knowingly. "So you haven't talked about him because you're having a crush on him and didn't want to accidentally reveal that?"

Sara blushed darker and yelped annoyed, refusing to talk to either of them while Joe and Sam laughed loudly at her dismay. She still continued to hug the green teddy though.

/July 2027 – Third Cohort, Camp Jupiter, New Rome\

Sam groaned, pretty sure he was about to die. He had suffered under the Greeks, but the Romans were brutal. The only good thing about the Roman camp were the unicorns. He had never seen real unicorns before. Grinning broadly, he pulled Iggy close to hug him. So maybe it was a little childish for a twelve-years old boy to carry a stuffed toy with him, but he had gotten it the week before he left his Greek home and friends. As much as he loved Sara like a real, proper sister, it was still a completely new environment and new people and he knew no one aside from Sara and he missed Trend and Sander and Marshall and Derek – and even Cally, though he wouldn't tell her that. Iggy was like all of that, his reminder of his Greeks (and he had gotten it from Trend, but that wasn't the point. At all). Cuddled up to the fluffy unicorn, he turned around to face Sara. The daughter of Mars grinned at him amused, clutching her own stuffed toy to her midsection.

"You really suffer, like, a lot", observed Sara. "I kinda feel bad for making you come here..."

"You didn't make me come, I wanted to come", corrected Sam with a frown, his nose buried in the wild, green mane of Iggy. "And I don't regret it. I mean, training is murderous, but I find your politics highly fascinating and I like your elephant. He's awesome. And your unicorns."

"Well, maybe I have something else to offer that you may like", smirked Joe as she leaned against the door-frame, with her arms crossed. "I talked to Nico, she said it would be alright to show him."

"Really?", gasped Sara wide-eyed and jumped off the bed. "Awesome! Come, Sam! Fast!"

"Fast...?", grunted Sam doe-eyed. "That is so not an option at the moment. I think Loki broke me."

"Cally would call you a wimp right now", teased Sara amused. "Now come, please, we got to show you something really, really awesome. Like totally special privileged-people-only awesome!"

"Okay...?", said Sam cautiously as he climbed off the bed, placing Iggy on his pillow. "Where to?"

"Bunker 9.2", announced Joe as she led the way.

Sam tilted his head intrigued. He knew of Bunker 9, but no child of Hephaestus would let a non-tinkerer inside their sanctuary. So the idea of seeing the Roman counterpart did make the naturally curious boy giddy. He stumbled after the two girls.

"W—Why am I allowed in though?", asked Sam in awe. "If I was a son of Hephaestus, yes, but..."

"We're not as picky as the Greeks", chuckled Joe amused. "We don't tolerate anyone in our bunker, but we do allow others aside from our siblings inside. Kara is a frequent quest too, so are our praetors and others. And since Sara is an honorary member and she like adopted you..."

Joe let the sentence hang in the air as she watched in amusement how her best friend pulled the Greek down into the bunker. It was dark, the walls weren't very high, it was dirty and stuffed with so much stuff – half-finished gadgets, metal and wood and whatever else, work-benches and so, so much more. Crowded, messy and disorganized. It made Sam's OCD twitch with displeasure, the urge to throw everything out, cleaning it thoroughly and one by one before putting it back, in a color-organized way, maybe sorted by kind too. And he would have to get all the bends out of the metal-scrapes. So maybe he was a little bit obsessive, but it was important to have an organized life. And having everything settled and organized helped him whenever something changed. Whenever he had to move, he kept the exact same order of things, kept his closet organized in the exactly same way so he could pretend it was just the same place as before. Adjusting to New Athens had made his problem slightly better, because for the first time, he stayed in one and the same place for more than a couple of weeks or months. But right now, with once again being in a new place, it kicked in with a vengeance again. Lucky for him – because he was pretty sure the Vulcan kids would behead him if he'd empty the bunker and clean it up – Sara had an attention-problem.

"Sam! Sam! Sam!", chanted Sara and jumped up and down in front of him. "Look, look, look!"

And as easy as that did Sara distract Sam from his urge to clean up and organize. Whenever Sara started to stumble over her own words once again, Joe supplied a logical and understandable explanation. Sam marveled at the patience Joe showed and at just how good she was with translating this mambo-jumbo. After a while of being dragged around everywhere, being shown extremely complex machines and introduced to about two dozen tinkering and busy people in an age range between five and twenty-five. Sam's head was buzzing by the time they reached the centurion of the Fifth Cohort. Nico Zhang. The Latina was grinning amused as they approached them. She wasn't alone, by the looks of it, she was explaining some kinds of plans for a giant robot to a very tall, very handsome and very blonde guy. Sam's eyes widened and his mouth hung open just the tiniest bit too much. He was older than Sam, by three years or so. Broader, like twice Sam's size. Taller, by at least one and a half head. He had cheekbones, high and strong cheekbones. And dimples when he grinned amused at something Nico had said. The curly, unruly blonde hair pointed into all directions wildly. Arms bulking with muscles as they were crossed over a firm, broad chest. Sam felt his heart speeding up and his face flushing as he stared at this picture of a guy.

"Wow...", whispered Sam in total awe as they approached the two.

Sadly enough the blonde Adonis was too engaged in his conversation with Nico to pay them much mind. And Sara was so fast at dragging him away again and chewing his ear off anyway.

/July 2027 – Bunker 9.2, Camp Jupiter, New Rome\

Okay, so maybe the unicorn stables only made second place on Sam's list of most awesome places in New Rome. He spend nearly all of his free time at Bunker 9.2, together with Nico and Joe and sometimes also Kara and Loki. It was only mildly interesting, if he was being honest. He wasn't much into planning and such – though he figured that Trend surely would have a certain appreciation for this. But aside from the arena, this was the place to find the hottest guys. And around here, the nice muscles weren't covered by armor, but rather adored by grease. So yes, maybe Sam visited Bunker 9.2 to enjoy the view. Greeks were nice to look at, but Romans were just the tad bulkier, more serious about their training. So very nice to look at. Especially so the tinkerers. Even more so one Leroy Jones, as Sam had learned a couple of days ago. He often hung out with Nico, mostly so because Nico was the head of the bunker – more or less so because Nico's mother had been the founder of Bunker 9.2 and the finder of Bunker 9 (Greek version). And since Joe had a bad case of hero worshiping going on for Nico Zhang, Joe was always close to Nico too. Since Sara – and with Sara also Sam – was mostly hanging out in the bunker because Joe was Sara's best friend, Sam got to spend about all the time sitting with Sara. While he talked with Sara, he listened in with one ear how Joe, Nico and Leroy debated on future tinkering and such. And while listening in, he got to stare at Leroy and marvel at that perfectly sculpted body. This had become Sam's routine over the past few days. Training, suffering, showering and then spending the rest of the day in Bunker 9.2, talking to Sara and drooling over Leroy.

At least until one day, when Joe and Nico seemed to have some kind of epiphany and ran off in the middle of a conversation. Suddenly, there was just Leroy, standing there, next to Sam and Sara. Not being distracted by the two girls. Sam blushed nervously as the blonde's attention laid on him.

"You'll go out with me tonight", said the son of Vulcan in a nearly commanding voice.

Sam looked left and right, his eyes wide, but there were just Sara and him close by and Leroy's dark, brown eyes were practically boring into Sam's soul. The Greek gave a nervous squeal, causing Sara next to him to giggle and Leroy to laugh amused.

"Y—You... mean me...?", asked the son of Ares surprised.

"I'm not blind", snorted Leroy, crossing his arms over his chest. "You keep staring at me. And you're cute. So why not. I'll pick you up at six, look pretty. Not that that will be a problem for you."

Sam nodded nervously. Then he got pulled out of the bunker by a giggling Sara. Before he could even really comprehend what had happened, he found himself back in the Third Cohort, being pushed onto his bed by a still giggling Sara. The ginger was eagerly going through Sam's clothes.

"W—What are you doing there, Sara?", asked Sam confused, grabbing Iggy.

"Looking for clothes for you", grinned Sara delighted, before frowning. "Or... don't you want to go? Because I kind of got the impression that you really like him?"

"Y—Yeah, I guess...", nodded Sam numbly. "But... I've never been on a date! Especially not with a guy! W—What am I supposed to do? I don't know if I should really go..."

"Oh", nodded Sara thoughtful and sat down next to her brother. "Well... What do you think?"

"He's hot", said Sam without hesitation. "I mean, really hot. And like the first guy ever to actually... like me. But I just... I'm nervous... What if I screw up and he notices that I'm not good enough?"

"Oh shut up!", huffed Sara and rolled her eyes. "You're like one of the most adorable things on this planet! If he thinks you're not good enough, then his standard is way too damn high, because if anything, he should be lucky to deserve you. You're the best big brother on the planet and certainly one of the best people around. So I'm sure you're going to be an awesome boyfriend too."

Sam grinned slightly and wrapped his arms around her neck. "Thanks, Sara. You're awesome."

"Yup", agreed the daughter of Mars and stood. "Now, you're going to sort yourself out and I'll check with Joe to borrow some of her clothes. You don't have a single skinny-jeans. What's wrong with you? And your shirts... boring. You, sit and wait."

Sam nodded numbly as his half-sister dashed out of the room in a crazy haze. Heaving a sigh, he hugged Iggy closer and collapsed on his bed. He had grown accustomed to staring at the hot guys from afar. Had been doing that with Trend for a while now. But suddenly, one of the hot guys asked him out. Wanted to go out with him. With him! What was he supposed to do? Frowning a little upset, he sat up again and stalked over to the built-in fountain of Cohort Three.

"Derek Rhys", said Sam firmly as he threw two golden coins into the water.

"Little perv, came to spy on me in the shower?", snickered a naked Derek with a wink.

Sam blushed furiously and covered his eyes. "Please take a towel. Please."

"You're so adorable, cutie", grinned the son of Demeter. "There, all covered up. You can look now."

"Thank you", sighed Sam, knowing fully well that it was not a given that a naked Derek would cover himself just because Sam was around. "I need your help, Der."

"With what?", asked Derek attentively, leaning in some. "What's wrong, cutie pie?"

"Uhm, well, nothing, I guess", shrugged the son of Ares embarrassed. "I just... someone asked me out. A guy. A really, really hot guy. And I have no idea what to do, Der!"

"Oh...", grunted the younger brunette with an openly displeased frown, before gathering himself and smiling tenderly. "Well, as long as you like him, I'm happy for you. What's he like?"

"I don't know if I like him just yet", frowned Sam and shook his head. "I mean, I don't know the guy. I know that I like looking at him. He's that tall, broad blonde guy with the delicious abs and all that stuff. He's a son of Vulcan, which basically means shirtless hotness covered in grease and sweat. Don't look at me like that, you would be drooling too if you could see him!"

"What's his name?", chuckled Derek, honestly amused this time.

"Leroy Jones", replied Sam with a grin. "So, he asked me out and now I'm kind of... lost?"

"He asked you out, which means he's interested in you. So stop freaking out", started Derek with a slightly deadpanned expression. "Take a shower, it'll relax you and your hair always looks pretty when you just showered because it curls so nicely. Get dressed in something decent. And then let him take the lead. Play the part. Oh, right. It's not just a part, it's the truth. You are a blushy little virgin who's never been on a date. Let it show a little. Believe me, the guys I've been with liked that a great deal. Gave them this feeling of being the first, it's good for their pride. Okay?"

"Okay", nodded Sam nervously and took a breath.

"And after the date, you'll call again and give me details", grinned Derek broadly, before frowning. "But tell this guy that if he's not the very best, perfect gentleman to you, your best friend will kick him in the balls. Very, very hard. Get that point across, alright?"

"I'm not going to threaten him on our first date!", hissed Sam embarrassed and glared. "Idiot!"

"Love you too", grinned Derek and broke the connection.

Heaving a sigh, Sam did as he was told and walked up to the showers to get himself cleaned. It probably was better if he smelt fresh and not like training and ew. Once he was showered – and admittedly also more relaxed – he fell face first onto his bed and waited for his half-sister to return to him with the clothes. So maybe he was a little uncomfortable thinking about wearing a girl's clothes, but then again Joe did kind of dress like a boy, so it would probably be alright.

"I got you skinny-jeans and a v-neck shirt! You have such a nice neck, you have to show it off!"

These words, being practically shouted into his face, were the only warning he got before his sister clomped him. And then she started ripping his clothes off and changing him as though he was her pretty barbie doll. Not that he could fight the girl on this matter.

/break\

Truth be told, the date itself was a blur to Sam. He had been way too nervous and was so busy fidgeting and sniffing the flowers Leroy had brought for him. But he was positively glowing when he came back to the cohort in the evening, placing the chocolate on his nightstand and fetching a glass of water for the flowers. Sara was already deep asleep by the time Sam was back, so he decided to go to the bathroom and try sending an IM to Derek.

"Hello, cutie pie", grinned Derek as the call connected. "So, how was your date?"

"It was... It was perfect", mumbled Sam confused, ruffling his shoulder-long hair.

"You don't sound happy?", noted the son of Demeter with a lot of confusion of his own.

"It's not that", objected Sam and shook his head. "It's just... I was so busy being nervous and thinking about not doing anything wrong that I was probably a horrible date for him."

"I don't believe that a date with you could be horrible", declared Derek determined. "You're way too adorable when you yelp and blush and are a nervous mess. He surely had fun watching you, sweetie. Now tell me, what did you do? What did he do? What happened?"

"He picked me up – brought me chocolate and flowers even", started Sam with a happy grin. "He invited me to dinner in this really delicious Italian restaurant and he paid and we shared a dessert and it was really nice, with romantic music in the background and all. And then he brought me back to Sara's and he... he... he kissed me. He brought me home and kissed me good-bye."

"With tongue?", questioned Derek.

"Ew, don't be gross!", yelped Sam and shook his head. "We only just went on one date! He just pressed his lips against mine in a short kiss. He's very charming. A gentleman and all. It was great."

Derek looked sad, just a little bit, when he smiled at Sam. "I'm happy for you, sweetie. But now hush, go to bed. You have Roman training tomorrow again. You need your sleep."

"Huh. You're right", nodded Sam with a glance at the clock. "Thanks, Der. For helping me out earlier and for listening. Good night, Der! Talk to you later."

"I'll be expecting your call", grinned Derek with a wink.

That night, Sam curled together around Iggy and fell asleep with a smile on his face.

/break\

Ten days passed. Ten days of hanging around Bunker 9.2, but instead of just gossiping with Sara, he sat on Leroy's lap, occasionally kissing or touching in some way. As long as Sam was close by, Leroy was content. The blonde had shown to be quite possessive, but in a way, Sam came to like it. It was a sign of Leroy liking him, wasn't it? He didn't like being apart from Sam, liked touching Sam and holding him close. That was sweet, wasn't it?

They were currently walking along the beach, holding hands. The sun was setting, being swallowed by the ocean. It was beautiful. Sam loved it. Everything was tinted red – his favorite color. It was just perfect. The most perfect date. Giggling slightly at the thought, he leaned his face against the very strong upper arm of his boyfriend. Leroy grunted curiously, sliding his arm around Sam's waist to pull the lithe brunette up against his side. Sam hummed contently at that.

"What are you giggling about, little one?", asked the son of Vulcan.

"Nothing", grinned Sam sheepishly. "Just... It's nice. Today. I love this day."

"Good", nodded Leroy pleased, caressing Sam's side. "You want to come over to my place?"

"Cohort Four?", asked Sam confused.

"No. My place in New Rome. More privacy to... talk", offered the blonde son of Vulcan.

Sam smiled brightly at that. So far, Leroy had not been the most talkative, so if the son of Vulcan wanted to actually sit down and talk with him. Nodding hastily, he urged Leroy on to guide them to New Rome. He was also quite curious about New Rome, because so far, he hadn't seen much of it. Leroy lived in a small apartment, startling similar to the ones the Greeks lived in in New Athens. Not all that much space, most taken by the large bed. Not even a couch. Then again, the television stood right in place to be watched from the bed. Sam blushed furiously as he reluctantly sat down on the large bed. His boyfriend was smirking when he sat down next to Sam.

"So... What did you want to talk about?", asked Sam with a smile.

"Actually... I thought we could do something more fun", smirked Leroy.

One hand found its way to Sam's thigh, the other slung around Sam's waist, trapping him, holding him. Sam shuddered slightly at the close proximity of the strong, handsome son of Vulcan. He liked those, when they were hugging and touching and kissing. Making out was what Derek had called it with the broadest grin possible. Reluctantly wrapping his arms around Leroy's neck, he closed his eyes and let himself be kissed passionately. The older boy slowly lowered him onto the bed, until Sam came to lay comfortably on the bed, with Leroy hovering above him. Strong, large hands wandered over Sam's chest and thighs and about everywhere. Breaking the kiss, Leroy peeled his tight shirt off his muscular frame, causing Sam to lick his lips. Yeah, he really enjoyed looking at strong guys. Smirking down at Sam, Leroy tugged on the younger boy's shirt.

"I show you mine, you show me yours", whispered the son of Vulcan into Sam's ear, licking the shell and biting the earlobe. "My pretty, little thing. You're so beautiful, my little Greek."

Sam hummed softly, arching his back, fingers clawed into Leroy's golden-blonde hair. It was nice, hearing compliments like that. But it kind of bothered him how Leroy always called him little. Not so much in a cute way, more in a literally belittling way. Still, he called him beautiful and cute, so that was probably his imagination running into overdrive.

"L—Leroy", gasped Sam, wide-eyed, grabbing Leroy's wrist. "No, wait."

His cheeks were dark red as he caught hand just as it was about to enter Sam's pants. They had kissed and touched, but not naked, not under the pants. Having no shirt on was already pushing it for Sam, but Leroy had looked at him so longingly, so he had agreed. Still, this was too much.

"Come on", grunted Leroy, not very amused. "I did everything you wanted since we got together. The park, restaurants, every movie you wanted to watch, the beach. Everything you wanted. And I paid. Don't you think it's time you... pay me back some? Do something I want to do?"

"Um... Yeah, I guess...", mumbled Sam unsure, wrapping his arms around his torso. "But-"

"But what?", asked Leroy with one cocked eyebrow. "So you think this is a one-way-deal then? I pay for you, do whatever you want, whenever you want it and that's it?"

"No!", objected Sam, starting to feel like an awful boyfriend. "I—I'm sorry, I don't... I didn't..."

Looking up at Leroy with those large, apologetic eyes, leaning up to kiss Leroy softly. Leroy hummed pleased and started to fidget with the button of Sam's jeans, slowly pulling it down. Sam started to feel more and more uncomfortable as his jeans hit the floor. He was always uncomfortable being naked around others, especially when those others were so well-trained. It made him feel inadequate. Leroy's hand returned to wandering all over his body, but once the taller boy was cupping Sam's cock, the son of Ares squirmed uncomfortable.

"No, wait. Please", whispered Sam softly, with large, pleading eyes. "I—I don't... I'm not ready to go that far yet. Can't we just... kiss some more? Please. I'm sorry, I don't want to be egoistic-"

"Well, for that, you're being awfully egoistic", snorted Leroy with a slight glare.

"I—I know, but I...", started Sam unsure. "I'm just twelve, I want to take it slow, Roy. Please."

"Stop being such a pussy, little pretty", grunted Leroy, grabbing Sam's wrists tightly. "You'll enjoy it too, I promise. I'll make you learn to enjoy it. But now be a good boy and stay put."

Sam stared wide-eyed and tried to struggle free from the grip, but he stood no chance against Leroy.

/break\

Sam was staring with unfocused eyes just ahead of himself. His arms were wrapped tightly around his legs, as though holding onto himself would maybe stop the pain. Everything hurt, especially his behind and his wrists. There was blood on the bedsheets beneath him, but he really didn't care at the moment. He was in way too much pain to move. Besides, Leroy was gone, had left after he had pulled out and said he had training. So Sam was at least alone. Still, he really wanted to get out of this bed, out of this apartment. Actually, also out of New Rome.

He was confused as he stumbled into the bathroom to at least get a little cleaned up before slowly forcing his aching body back into his clothes. He was pretty sure he took at least trice as long as he would normally be, but he hurt just too much. It was already late when he reached Cohort Three and collapsed on his bed, curling together and nearly instantly falling asleep again.

"Sam? Sam, Sam, Sam! Come on, wake up! Training!", exclaimed Sara loudly, waking him.

Sam groaned, cracking one eye open. It felt as though he had only just crawled into the bed five minutes ago, but it looked like morning. And Sara looked awake. Urgh. Groaning, he turned around.

"Leave me alone, Sara", moaned Sam hoarsely. "I'm not good..."

"Are you getting sick?", asked his sister worried, feeling his forehead. "No, not sick. But... wow... You look like some monster chewed you up and spit you out again. I think you should stay in bed today, just in case. I'll tell the praetors you're not well. Get better soon, big bro."

The daughter of Mars pushed his hair out of his face and kissed his forehead softly before leaving. Sam heaved a relieved sigh and closed his eyes again to drift off into a not very deep slumber.

"Samuel? Samuel, are you awake?"

The voice tore him from his sleep again. Grunting annoyed, he cracked one eye open to come face to face with Loki Murdock and Blance Lamour. The praetors. Blance looked more or less bored and judgmental while Loki had a slightly worried frown attached to his face.

"Mh?", grunted Sam in response, rubbing his eyes.

"Sara told us that you're not feeling well", started Loki, looking him up and down.

"And I was so sure that you're faking because you can't stand Roman training", teased Blance.

"Anyway", grunted Loki, glaring at his partner. "You really don't look all too well. It probably is best if you rest for now. Sadly, nectar and ambrosia only work for injuries. You'll have to sleep that one out, I guess. Anyway, we'll check on you tomorrow again. Rest well."

Sam frowned as he watched be praetors leaving the cohort again. Nectar and ambrosia didn't work on sickness, but on injuries. And damn it all, he was injured. Probably still bleeding even, he didn't dare to check. The pain itself was worse enough. Grunting lowly, he slowly forced himself to get up and out of bed to check the cohort's nectar-supplies. The way he was moving would probably make everyone suspicious during dinner, so he needed that stuff. Once the nectar was running through his system, he was feeling a little better. And a little dizzy. Yawning widely, he collapsed back on the bed, staying in a state of half-asleep, drifting in and out of sleep until dinner time.

"Hey, little pretty, I think you slept enough. You need to eat too, you know?"

Sam stiffened and slowly opened his eyes. This time around, there were even three people looming over him. Joe, Sara and Leroy. Sara was kneeling in front of Sam, caressing his cheek tenderly.

"You feeling better, big bro?", asked the daughter of Mars concerned.

"Mh, yeah", nodded Sam and yawned slightly, cracking his neck.

"Sara told me you're not feeling well", stated Leroy and sat down next to Sam on the bed, caressing Sam's hair in that way that made Sam melt. "My poor pretty. I brought you some flowers."

Sam's eyes darted over to his nightstand where a bouquet of the most beautiful, deep red hibiscus flowers. Right next to the flowers was a box of chocolate. Nougat, his absolute favorite. Just like the flowers. So Leroy had listened to what Sam had told him, after all. He did care.

"I wanted to take you out for dinner, Italian, your favorite, but if you're not feeling well...", murmured Leroy concerned and leaned down to tenderly brush his lips against Sam's forehead.

"I—I'm... I'm feeling... better", whispered Sam unsure.

He wasn't even sure why he was saying that. Well, he was feeling better, but after last night, shouldn't he stay away from Leroy? But maybe... Leroy had just wanted him too much? That Leroy wanted him so much that he couldn't wait? Maybe now he was sorry and now that he had his sex? Maybe he will be back to normal again now? Leroy smiled at him and kissed him softly.

"Well then, maybe you should go out with Leroy then?", suggested Joe. "You haven't eaten at all."

"Yeah! Joe's right!", agreed Sara eagerly. "Maybe you'll be all fine again after a good meal?"

Sara and Sam shared that one opinion. Food made everything better. Sam smiled reluctantly and nodded. While Joe led Leroy out of the cohort, Sara already threw fresh clothes at Sam.

/break\

Dinner had been fantastic, Leroy kept asking questions about Sam's family and how he was feeling and just let Sam talk. Something Sam loved. Talking about Ireland and England, about uncle Liam and his mom. It was amazing, Leroy was being a complete gentleman, pulling the chair out for Sam, sharing a pizza with him and even ordering a large dessert for Sam. It was the perfect date, the stars were sparkling above them as they made their way back. Sam was so exhausted from the day's events that he was constantly yawning and practically let Leroy half carry him.

"Mh? Where are we going?", mumbled Sam confused.

"To my place", stated the son of Vulcan in a nearly soft voice. "You look like you're about to fall over. My place is closer. What do you say, we curl together on the couch, watch a movie?"

"Can we watch Mulan?", asked the son of Ares with sparkling eyes.

"Anything you want, little one", chuckled Leroy amused.

/break\

Leroy did not do anything Sam wanted. As soon as they were on the couch, Leroy was already tugging on Sam's clothes. And this time, once wasn't enough for the son of Vulcan. Sam could barely even protest, still aching too much from last night. And afterward, he could only cry himself to sleep. And in the morning, he got woken up rather roughly by Leroy, who demanded even more. Once Leroy left – left him alone, aching and crying, just like last time – Sam knew he had to get away. He barely cleaned himself before he stumbled out and back to Cohort Three.

"Sam! Where have you been? You know you ca-", started Sara to rant.

By the looks of it, she had been waiting while all others were already gone to get breakfast, just so she could preach to him about not staying the night. But once she caught a proper look of him, she stopped instantly and gasped. Within a second, she was all over him, hugging him.

"Oh my gods, what happened to you, big brother?", asked Sara worried. "Oh gods, d—did Leroy...? Did Leroy do this to you? Oh gods. C—Come on, let's go to the hospital, brother."

Sam wanted to protest, but he was weak and every little move send jolts of pain through his whole body and damn, Sara was strong. He was drifting in and out of consciousness on their way to the hospital and he was pretty sure he must have passed out completely at one point, because the next time he woke up, he was in a hospital bed, with a beeping sound bothering him and a blonde doctor hovering above him. Sam frowned confused and tried to rub his face, just to wince.

"You got a nasty shiner there, you should probably not touch it until it's healed", stated the doctor and smiled kindly at Sam. "Good morning, Samuel. I'm Doctor Will Mason."

"Morning, doc", nodded Sam. "When can I leave again?"

"A... friend of mine is here and he would like to talk to you too, Samuel", said Will cautiously.

"I don't want to talk to anyone", sighed the son of Ares annoyed. "My sis already talked enough."

And that she had, even though he had been dizzy and his mind had been fuzzy, he did catch the gist of Sara's rant on their way to the hospital. How she would not allow him to ever see Leroy again.

"Well, you won't get around this conversation... Samuel Raser", announced a new voice.

A critical looking blonde with a scar on his lip took the medical files from Will. It did not make Sam any more comfortable to have the two adults looking so serious while watching him.

"There is nothing to talk about", whispered Sam softly.

"Those are not from training. Those bruises. The bruises on your wrists, your face. You had two broken rips, Samuel", stated Will concerned and shook his head. "Some beat you up."

"And that's why I'm here", interrupted the other blonde seriously. "I'm Jason Grace, head of the Roman division of the Demigod Protective Service. See, we're here to protect demigods like you. Not just those from bad mortal homes, but we also want our camps safer. There had always been problems between certain campers. Due to their parentage. Like, my dad is better than yours, we're more respected than you are, such petty things. We're here to protect our charges from bullying. And frankly enough, you do look like you got bullied. You just have to tell me who did this and I'll take care of this, Samuel. We won't let such a thing happen again."

"Look, I won't let such a thing happen again, so nothing to do for you", huffed Sam.

He didn't want them to know. They couldn't know. They thought some bullies had cornered him and beaten him up, that was fine. Shall they think whatever they want to think. But there was no way he could let them know what Leroy had done to him. The pain was too great. The shame was too great. How could Leroy have done this to him? He was so short of falling in love with the handsome Roman, all the chivalry, all the romance. Such a gentleman. Roy had been so sweet to Sam. But all just to get into Sam's pants, whether Sam wanted it or not?

"I don't have anything to say to you, so leave me alone", whispered Sam in a broken voice.

/break\

The two blondes were very persistent, but Sam was just a notch too stubborn for them. There was nothing they could do, not unless he told them something. Which he didn't. The nectar and ambrosia helped him a great deal, together with Doctor Mason's care and by the time afternoon rolled around, Sam released himself from the hospital and left. He wanted to get away, not just from the hospital, but from everything here. He wanted to get back home, where he was safe and where Leroy was as far away as possible. He never wanted to see the son of Vulcan again.

"Hello, little pretty."

"What do you want?", growled Sam, with as much bite to it as possible.

"Oh, turning fierce there?", laughed Leroy amused as he caught up with Sam.

"Y—You... what you did to me...", whispered Sam, feeling the tears in his eyes.

"Hey now, you know you don't look pretty when you cry", snorted Leroy, grabbing Sam's chin. "I didn't do anything to you. I just took what is mine. You're my boyfriend, I take you out to dates and you serve me in the bed. This is a two-way thing, little one. You have your duty to fulfill too."

"J—Just leave me alone", pleaded Sam and tried to run.

/break\

He couldn't run far and Leroy was too strong. Two hours later and Sam found himself once again curled together on Leroy's bed, bleeding and crying, while Leroy got dressed again. It was as though he could not break free. As long as Leroy wanted him, he would have him. Because he was just too weak, he couldn't run, couldn't fight. He was weak, had no chance.

"W—Why...? Why me...?", asked Sam in a broken voice.

"You're interesting", shrugged Leroy as he straightened his shirt. "I never had a Greek before. A son of Ares nonetheless. Mars is one of our highest valued gods. War, fight, battle. Strength. You could not possibly be more the opposite of what a child of Mars should be. You're cute, beautiful and a really good fuck. But you know what, I think it's over between us. Your constant whining and crying is really giving me a headache. I think it's better if we part ways, even though you're really tight and look amazing all flushed and in pain. Oh well. You can see yourself out?"

He left. Just like that, he left. Left Sam alone and broken, in immense pain and more humiliated than he had ever felt in his entire life. Because he was a son of Ares, but different from them? Was that it? The reason why he was in so much pain now? A divine punishment, because he fought his nature, because he was a disgrace? Was this his punishment for wanting a strong, hot guy to carry him on his hands and spoil him rotten? That he got the exact opposite? Was he just not meant to have a sweet, strong boyfriend? He had wanted that – to feel a boy within him. One day, months or years from now, with a boy he actually really loved. But a son of war and fighting should not want to be dominated, should he? They had called him that before, in the Greek camp, a disgrace to Ares. Though everyone who dared to call him that had gotten beaten up by Trend and Sander. But maybe those were right. Ares dominated and controlled. Wanting to give up that control and be swept off his feet by a handsome hero like a damsel in distress, how could the Fates not punish such desires? If he stopped doing that, wanting that, maybe he would be alright? Maybe he just had to be what everyone expected him to be so he could be truly happy? Because this was not happy, even though a relationship with a handsome, strong hero was everything he had wanted. Everything he shouldn't want, he supposed. This was not what a son of Ares was supposed to want. So he got punished for it, with the pain and the humiliation. Never again. He swore to himself that he would never let himself be that weak again, would never let anyone have that much power over him again. No one would ever dominate him again. Not in battle and not ever in bed. He would change, would do everything different, as long as the fates would be pleased and let him continue living in peace. No more pain, no more humiliation. He never again wanted to feel like he felt in that moment.

/break\

Saying good-bye to Sara had been hard, because she had cried and clung to him for dear life, but she understood. Well, she understood half-way. She should he was leaving because Leroy had hit him. She had no idea... She could never have any idea about this. She could never know. No one could. Still, she helped him get out of camp early, with some cheap excuses to the praetors. They talked to Jason Grace and, by the looks of it, came to the agreement that Sam had probably been bullied by Romans for being a Greek and for being a weak fighter on top of that. So they had let him go, let him return home even though summer wasn't over yet. The flight back to New Athens was pure bliss, clinging to Fighter and soaring through the sky as though they were free, completely free. No one to taunt him, no one to bother him. Only him, the sky and one of the being he trusted most. He probably needed about a week of sleep after all the nectar and ambrosia he had consumed in the past two days. After all the pain he had been through in the past two days.

Fighter landed on the small balcony, more a balance act than a real landing. Climbing off her back, he kissed her side and caressed her mane for a last time before she took off again. His apartment was a little sticky and dark, because he had pulled down the shades before he had left. It suited him just fine. Dumping his bag carelessly on the ground, he only got one thing out of it before curling together on his bed. Iggy was hugged tightly to his midsection, the green mane of the plush pony tickling his nose while he cried himself to sleep, his small frame shaking forcefully with the tears.

/break\

Derek Rhys was a bored, bored boy. Sure, Sander was pretty to look at and it was actually nice being with the brunette, but still... He wasn't Sam. Wasn't what Derek really wanted. But those large puppy-eyes were something else entirely. The two of them were laying at the beach at the moment, cuddled up together on the towel. They were watching a game of beach volleyball, boys versus girls. Marshall, Trend, Charles from Apollo cabin and Victor from Hephaestus cabin were on one team, against Bianca di Angelo, Thea Chase, Calandra Rodriguez and Rainbow Jordan. Melissa and Stella were sitting with the couple, chatting idly away with Derek. It was amazing, he was actually making friends. Having a boyfriend, such a social one at that, had helped his social skills. There was also the matter of no-Sam-available, so he didn't have his whole attention focused on Sam. Melissa was a daughter of Dionysus was only a year older than Derek, but she was great company. Someone who understood plants the way he did and her mind did have a wicked edge, something he really liked. Stella though, well, the daughter of Aphrodite was just a little shallow, but still sweet to talk to. He admired Sander for actually sticking around, because Derek knew the other boy had the deep desire to just run free and join the game again. But Sander was just that affectionate, promising him some cuddles convinced the brunette to stick around on the beach.

"Der", murmured Sander and kissed Derek's temple. "Why do you think Fighter is back?"

"Fighter is back?", repeated Derek stunned and turned some in the embrace.

"Yeah. I saw her earlier when I was taking Trick out for a ride", nodded the legacy of Hermes with a thoughtful frown. "You think she didn't like the Romans and returned to her home stables?"

"Maybe", nodded Derek slowly, patting Sander's head.

He had only gotten together with Sander because, well, the brunette was nice to look at and very close to Sam. And with Sam having a boyfriend now, why not trying to make the cutie jealous by dating Sam's other best friend? He wouldn't have thought for Sander to be such a charming, cute boyfriend, so that was a good twist there. Grinning slightly, he kissed the corner of Sander's mouth.

"You two want to get to an empty cabin?", offered Melissa and rolled her eyes.

"Oh, the desires of young lovers", sighed Stella dreamily. "So romantic."

"Urgh, Aphrodite-brats", grunted Melissa and rolled her eyes while ruffling Stella's hair.

/break\

Derek had checked it himself, but Sander's words had been true. Fighter was back. And that could only mean one thing. Sam was back too. Because that horse was loyal to the grave, she would never leave Sam alone in a foreign environment. Sneaking out of camp was by far not complicated, not if someone really wanted it. And if it meant seeing Sam, then Derek truly wanted it.

It didn't take him long to reach their apartment building and the apartment of one Sam Raser. Knocking had no effect. Calling out to Sam had no effect. And after a while, he started to believe that perhaps, Sander had been right after all and Fighter had returned on her own. But then he remembered that he had a spare-key to Sam's place and figured that checking couldn't hurt. And oh, he was glad for that decision. Because what he found was not good. Sam was laying on top of his bed, crying and cuddling up to Iggy. Frowning worried, Derek slowly walked up to him.

"Cutie pie?", whispered the son of Demeter as he sat down on the bed, slowly pushing the soft, wavy hair out of Sam's face to see the tear-strained cheeks. "What are you doing here? What's wrong? Where do those bruises come from? What happened, Sam?"

"D—Der?", asked Sam, his voice soft and filled with fear.

"Yeah, it's me", confirmed Derek, now even more worried. "It's alright. Whatever it is, it's alright."

Sam sobbed once before he threw himself at Derek, hugging him tightly and burying his face in Derek's stomach. The son of Demeter frowned concerned as he returned the hug and caressed Sam's hair softly. Crying, afraid and obviously in pain. Also, back from the Romans early. Something must have happened with the Romans. With the Roman boyfriend, because otherwise Sam would be crying in said boyfriend's arms instead of bringing so much distance between himself and the boyfriend. Derek whispered soft words into Sam's ear while he waited for the other brunette to calm down again so they could talk. It took Sam some time, but he finally stopped crying.

"He hurt you, didn't he?", asked Derek softly, rubbing the tear-strains from Sam's cheeks.

The way Sam averted his eyes was answer enough. And the way Sam stayed stubbornly silent was not very reassuring either. He tugged one of the peanut-colored strands behind one of Sam's ear.

"I need a haircut", whispered Sam determined. "I look like a girl. Weak. I don't want... I..."

"Okay", interrupted Derek with a short nod before Sam could start crying again. "I could give you a haircut. A manly haircut. What do you think about a... mh... a mohawk?"

"What's that?", frowned Sam confused. "Sounds like a bird."

Derek laughed softly and stood to get the scissors. "Get into the bathroom, less of a mess there."

/break\

Sam looked adorable with a mohawk. Derek loved it. Also, Sam had smiled, the first time he had looked into a mirror, he had smiled. A small and slightly sad smile, but a smile nonetheless. Once Sam was lulled back to sleep – with Iggy pressed close to his heart – Derek left again. He had something else to finish. Truth be told, he wasn't big on flying, especially not for hours and sneaking away from camp was not something he normally did either. Still, he had some unfinished business to attend to in New Rome. And Fighter was more than eager once Derek whispered into her ear that it was for Sam. Getting to New Rome wasn't hard, just boring. Finding the Happy Dragon, where Leroy Jones had frequently took Sam out to, wasn't hard either. Spotting a tall, handsome, blonde Roman was easy too. Smiling timidly, Derek sat down at the bar and ordered a large coke. Nipping it, he repeatedly smiled into the direction of the tall blonde, until the guy finally abandoned the friends he was with to come and sit next to Derek.

"You're cute. I'd remember if I had seen your around before", pointed the tall Roman out.

"I'm just... passing through", smiled Derek. "What's your name, handsome?"

"Leroy Jones. And who do I have the pleasure of talking to?", replied Leroy.

"D... David", answered Derek with a fake smile. "David Tennant. You alone here?"

"With some friends", answered Leroy, jerking his head into the direction of his friends.

"How about I order you something to drink while you ditch those friends of yours?"

Derek had one of his most seductive grins on and winked at Leroy. It worked instantly. The guy stood and left, giving Derek the opportunity to order a coke for him too and slip something into the glass. When Leroy returned, they finished the cokes, talked and flirted heavily.

"What do you say...?", whispered Derek lowly, leaning in, resting a hand on Leroy's thigh. "We leave this place and head over to yours? I'm sure you have a bed, don't you?"

"A boy all to my liking", chuckled Leroy with a nearly wicked grin.

Derek knew this kind of guy. All that mattered to him was sex. How in the world did his adorable, innocent Sammy end up falling pray to such a predator? Well, at least the predator was easy pray for Derek. Within minutes, they were out of the restaurant, heavily kissing and on their way to Leroy's place. Something was phony about this guy, because if he really cared about Sam, he would be worried out of his mind and ask himself where Sam was instead of picking the next best boy up for make-out-sessions. When they reached Leroy's bed, it was an easy feat to pin the taller boy to the bed, straddling his hips. It was even easier thanks to the plants on the window-sill.

"You're a kinky, little thing", chuckled Leroy intrigued.

"What did you do to Sam?", asked Derek in a low and dangerous voice.

The son of Vulcan stiffened and tried to tug on the tight bonds of roots. The plants though, they were too strong. They kept the demigod in place, keeping Derek safe from the blind rage that he could see in those dark, blue eyes. This guy, he was dangerous and Derek could see it.

"Nothing unjustified", growled Leroy annoyed. "He's my boyfriend, I just demanded what-"

"Oh, you little bastard", growled Derek back, blind rage flashing through his eyes as he gripped Leroy's throat tightly. "I knew it. See, no one really takes me serious, but there is one thing I can do. And that's reading people. I knew you were trouble when I walked into that restaurant and I knew what kind of trouble you are when you kept undressing me with your eyes. You're a rapist. You're hungry and that hunger will never stop. You will never stop. You will never stop hurting people. But you made a mistake, because you hurt that one person, the only person on this planet, that I care about. So I will never let you hurt anyone ever again."

"W—What are you going to do?", asked Leroy, sounding slightly afraid. "You going to kill me?"

"Oh no. No, I'm not going through that trouble", chuckled Derek amused and tilted his head. "No, I'm not a murderer. And death is by far too good for you. Besides, what I had in mind for you, I already did. I slipped it into your drink earlier, at the restaurant."

"W—What did you slip into my drink?", growled Leroy, a bit panicked and very furious.

"Let's call it... reverse-viagra", hummed Derek softly and with an evil smirk. "I'm a son of Demeter, I can control plants. All kinds of plants. And I know how they work. It was easy, really, to brew something up. Something that will keep you from ever getting up again. See, death is a mercy. I want you, stuck with that hunger forever, but unable to ever feed on that one thing you desire the most. You will never have sex again. You will never rape anyone again."

"You little-", spat Leroy, short of going berserk.

"Ah, ah, ah. There is still one more thing left to be said", chimed Derek mischievously. "See, I can take away your manhood, just like that. With a little mixture. But if you ever come close to Samuel Raser again, I will take everything from you. There are various poisons in nature. I can take your ability to see, to hear, to taste, I can drive you completely crazy, render you immobile for the rest of your life. And I will do all of that and even more if you ever hurt him again."

/break\

Derek knew. Well, he knew as much as Sara did. Why did that stupid, affectionate idiot have to come and check on him anyway? At least Derek didn't ask questions, he just held Sam and cooed at him and made him feel better. And he gave Sam a haircut. And even more importantly, Derek had promised not to tell anyone. Not about his bruises and not about his early return. To give Sam some weeks to adjust and heal up and get better. Whatever that meant. To Sam, it meant holing up in his apartment, curling together on his bed, crying himself to sleep and not talking to anyone. Yeah, that helped. To an extend. An extend that meant staying like that forever, because otherwise, this won't work at all. He was aware of that, he knew that he could only stay this way if he stayed this way – completely. Alone and hurled up in loneliness. But that wasn't him. He wasn't a loner. He liked people, he liked being with people, being with his friends. So he needed to find another solution.

"Sammy. What are you...? How did you get inside my apartment? When did you get back?"

"Hi, Trend", whispered Sam with a small, slightly sad smile. "Not long ago. And I have a key."

Trend cocked one eyebrow, not asking how Sam got that key, just throwing his bag into a corner and sitting down next to Sam on the couch. He noticed how the son of Ares stiffened some, but he didn't think much of it. He was just glad to see Sammy again.

"So... How was Camp Jupiter?", asked Trend after a short, awkward silence.

"I need you to train me. Please."

"What?", grunted the son of Athena confused.

"I...", started Sam, unsure how to continue, running his fingers through his hair. "I want to be stronger than Romans. I need to be stronger than Romans. Stronger than anyone."

For another second, Trend frowned confused, but then he grinned. He knew Romans were fighters – Sam probably finally realized that being a fighter was important for demigods like them. It seemed seeing the fierce Romans finally triggered Sam's ambition to become strong himself. Finally. This was what Trend had waited for, because honestly, everything he really wanted was to fight side by side with Sam, train the other boy and see him in action. It made his fingers itch to know that now, the time had come. He would get his chance to train Sam and fight with him.

"Well then", grinned Trend giddily and stood. "Come on."

"What? Now?", asked Sam stunned and stared up at the son of Athena.

"You want to become stronger? No better time for that than the now", announced the blonde.

"Y—Yeah", nodded Sam slowly and stood, unsure about himself.

Nervous again, he ran his fingers through his hair. He wasn't keen on training, on sweating and aching all over again. But this kind of aching would make him strong, would give him the ability to fight off anyone who would ever try to bring him such pain again. He froze when he felt different fingers running through his hair, but when he looked up, he looked right into those amazingly intelligent, storm-gray eyes. It was Trend. Only Trend. Heaving a sigh, he relaxed some.

"I like your new haircut, Sammy", stated Trend with a small smile, caressing the hand-wide stripe of two inch long peanut-colored hair running along the middle of Sam's head. "Looks cute on you."

"It's not cute!", protested Sam with a huff. "It's badass!"

"Yeah", snorted the blonde. "You keep telling yourself that, Sammy."

"Y—You jerkface!", gasped Sam and grabbed a pillow to hit Trend upside the head.

Trend laughed at that and took a pillow to defend himself. "I'm the jerkface? Do you even know the newest news? Sander and Derek are dating! Your best friends. Now tell me how that feels."

"Ew. That is ew", shuddered Sam with a small, but genuine grin. "They can't! No!"

Trend just laughed in reply as they continued their pillow-fight. Today, there wouldn't be any training, just him trying to make Sam smile again and get that weirdly sad expression off Sam's face. But any following day for the next year was spend on a tight training schedule.

---

Author's note: Sorry for the long wait, but I was literally stuck at the part when he met Leroy, because I didn't know how to write it and I didn't want to write it. Didn't want to put Sam through the pain. Also, I don't write explicite rape. So yeah, it kind of has holes now, but there are just some things...

Anyway, next chapter will have the Questing Years - Sam and Sander going on their quests, becoming heroes, having boding time and Sam getting the Heart of War from Aphrodite and Ares! ;)