A/N: This chapter will be a little bit mushy, because it'll focus A LOT on Percy and Ares after the former's recent success. And it may be a bit short. Friend/Friend, "Bros before Hoes" love only! Enjoy!

Third Person POV

Lights flashed and music boomed from the Zeus' Cabin. Luckily, Chiron allowed the Cabin to be used for a "welcome back" party for Percy. After all, it was the biggest Cabin in the camp.

Inside, there was dancing, games, and the ever-loved teenage drama. Percy was a little weary because everyone was invited, meaning he would either run into Annabeth, or be eaten alive by every girl at camp.

Unfortunately, it was the former.

While dancing and flirting with a daughter of Apollo, Percy saw Annabeth talking to some son of Hermes (not either of the Stolls). A spark, or maybe more of a nuclear explosion of jealousy built up within him…the boy was talking, making her laugh…even dancing with her—very closely.

Percy had to escape and think, so he offered to go get his "date", Vanessa, a drink. Unfortunately, Annabeth had been getting a drink of her own. Percy tried his hardest not to strike conversation, but he didn't have to since she said the first word.

"Hey."

"H-hey."

"Nice party."

"Thanks."

"Can I—talk to you about something?"

"Um…sure."

"Not here. We have to be alone."

At that, Annabeth grasped Percy's hand and led him to the side of the cabin, between Zeus' and Hera's. Since they were close together, the space often served as a rendition of a dark alley in Manhattan. She let go of his hand, and leaned gently against the Cabin wall, looking up at her ex-boyfriend.

"Percy…I know about you being the Agent of Olympus. I heard you and Chiron talking."

Percy felt his heart skip a beat. Of course she would've found out, one way or another. She turned his head to look at hers, and there was a deep level of concern in her striking gray eyes.

"Percy…this is dangerous. Please…you don't have to do it if you don't want to."

"I don't have much else, Chase. You kicked my heart in the ass, and I wouldn't expect you to understand any of this. What did I do wrong again? Never mind, don't answer that. Guess I was just a phase for you, huh?"

"Percy—"

"Have fun at my party, Wise Girl. Your date's waiting."

The words sliced their way through Percy's lips, making him feel terrible. He threw his drink on the ground violently in front of her, splashing her jeans, and walked away in disgust for hurting the woman he loved.

The party continued on. Percy danced with Vanessa, Drew, and even some Hunters who came to visit (after all, not all of them hated him). Virtually any girl who could strike jealously through Annabeth Chase, he would dance and flirt with them.

And he hated himself for it.

Apparently there was a "God" section of the party, and Percy invited all who could attend. Every single God and Goddess on the Olympian council was sitting in the lounge, except Ares who was waiting for a perfect moment to speak with Percy alone. As he walked past the area, he noticed Athena staring at him with daggers, Apollo raising his glass to him, Zeus nodding in reluctant approval (although it was barely noticeable), and Poseidon flashing him a smile. Hades sat in silence, seeing Percy for only a moment and slightly ushering his head upwards as if he were saying, "hey."

Then he noticed Hephaestus in the corner of the party, sitting with Aphrodite and Ares, waving his hand back and forth telling Percy to come and talk with them. Percy nodded, and then strode up to the trio, trying his best to smile and forget about his run-in with Annabeth a few minutes earlier.

"Lord Hephaestus," Percy, said, bowing. "Lord Ares. Lady Aphrodite."

"Ooh, he italicized my name!"

"What?" the two Gods asked.

"Oh, nothing."

Percy sat down across from the three Gods, turning the chair backwards and leaning over it casually. "Let's try and be informal about this. Get comfortable, you know? Enjoying the party?"

The three Gods nodded, followed by Ares softly grunting and handing his apprentice a drink. "So…how does it feel, Jackson?"

"How does what feel, sir?"

"You know. How does it feel being one of the most powerful, trusted and respected demigods to ever walk the earth? Ya know, the big-shot?"

"It feels fantastic, sir."

"Yes you are…" Aphrodite murmured dreamily. Percy ignored her, and took a sip of his drink while still maintaining eye-contact with Ares and Hephaestus.

"You know, Percy, you caused quite a scare for the council last term," Hephaestus said calmly. "What with you rejecting immortality and all."

"It was the right thing to do, Lord Hephaestus."

The blacksmith God eyed the sea-spawn skeptically, waiting for him to change his mind, but to no avail. Luckily, Ares sat up and changed the subject quickly enough.

"So, I trust you got the symbol I left for you in the mail?" he asked, prompting a "yes" from Percy. He hadn't thought the boy was that dimwitted, after all.

"Yes. Two birds with one stone. I'm guessing I have to complete two tasks on one mission, right?"

"Whataya know? The kid's got a head after all."

"I may be 'Seaweed Brain', sir, but my brain ain't made of seaweed."

…That actually makes sense... Hephaestus thought to himself.

Ares cleared his throat. "Well, Deimos has asked me to tell you that he…wants to face you himself. You'll have to fight him in person."

"Ok, that seems easy enough. Then what?"

"He's taken my chariot," Ares began, "for the millionth time. I need you to defeat him, retrieve my chariot, and then take it to Athena's temple. And steal the original Aegis."

"And you're comfortable telling this to me in front of your brother and girlfriend? Who just so happen to be Gods as well?"

"They won't tell a soul."

Percy scratched his chin and thought hard. Taking form Aphrodite was easy enough. She hadn't noticed a thing. But taking Athena's prized shield, Aegis? That was something else entirely. And worst of all, Percy was still uninformed as to what Aphrodite's Elixir would be used for.

But it was for the better. In spite of everything bad that had happened to him in life, and everything that was kept from him, he was still the good guy. Still the hero.

"It will be done, Ares," Percy said, with a charming smile playing across his lips.

Ares grunted in approval, and raised his glass to Percy as the Gods and demigod drank the last of their drinks.

As Aphrodite winked at Percy, and left with her husband to mingle, Ares sat still with Percy across from him. He opened his mouth to say something, but then closed it just as quickly.

"Something on your mind?" Percy asked curiously.

"No."

"Secrets, secrets are no fun, unless they're shared with every-!"

"PISS OFF."

The two sat in awkward silence. Percy kept gazing up, waiting for the God to strike up a conversation, but apparently he didn't really have much to say. So, naturally, Percy broke the silence.

"I want to thank you, Ares."

"For what, kid?"

"For…for looking out for me. Without you, I'd probably be in Godly jail for intruding Olympus last night."

Ares scoffed. "You did alright."

"Um…I never asked you. What's up with you and your brother? You're supposed to love each other."

Ares stared off, avoiding eye-contact with Percy. Even he, being completely straight and platonic with the boy, knew that one gaze into the famous sea-green eyes would pry out any piece of information their owner desired.

"Ok," he began softly, "so I'm not the best brother in the world. Yes, I stole his wife. But is it my fault that she doesn't love him? No. Talk to her about that. I don't hate any of my family. I love all of them on some level. But my nature just…won't let me show it."

Percy looked down, starting to understand the God of War a little bit better with each sentence that passed by.

"Growing up as a kid, I was powerful. I was, and still am the God of War. I just felt like it was my job to win at everything. In my mind, if I wasn't first, I was last. Ever seen Talladega Nights? Anyways, I guess that got to my head. Aphrodite strolled in Olympus, and she was—again, still is—the hottest thing up there. Should I have taken her away from Heph? No. I admit that. I don't agree with mother. Someone has to love the guy. He's considered ugly, crippled, and socially depraved. That can get tough. But I act like a pissed off teenager ninety percent of the time because I still feel like being the best is what I have to do. Does that make sense?"

"Yes," Percy said in a hushed tone, almost in a whisper, "it actually does. But it doesn't make it right."

"Everyone has their personal demons, kid," Ares laughed. "Except you of course. You're the poster-child."

"Heh…I don't know about that."

"So what's up with you, then? Why are you so perfect all of the time?"

Percy breathed in, still laughing to himself. "I'm not perfect, Ares. No one is. I'm temperamental, oblivious to other's feelings—"

"And a die-hard romantic?"

"HA-HA. It always comes back to this. Look, I'm not Mr. Perfect. I respect women because they deserve to be respected. They're more powerful than some of them even realize. That's where I disagree with my father and uncles. My mother was treated like crap by my first step-father, and I wasn't about to let myself turn into that. As for being loyal, if you make a promise to a friend, you KEEP it…that's a virtue. Bravery? Natural. Strength and status? Natural again. And good looks? Well, that caught even me off guard."

Percy and Ares shared a laugh. The first in years. Actually, it most likely was their fist laugh together. Ares leaned in, magically conjured another drink for Percy, and then handed it to him.

"For some reason," Ares responded, "I'm beginning to even doubt why I hated you in the first place, Punk."

Percy smiled at that, and raised his glass to Ares as the two shared a toast. "To us, Lord Ares. And to those like us."

"Damn few…Percy. Damn few."

The two men sat and drank, gaining a new-found respect for one another. Ares was surprised that he was taking a liking to this child, and Percy felt the same. They were supposed to despise each other, right? Not enjoy each other's company.

And yet, the two preferred this relationship much more. Two champions, who would soon remember each other as the rarest type of champions there were:

Champions of Peace.

A/N: YAY! FRIENDSHIP! I'm really proud of this chapter because not many people delve into the psychosis of Ares and how he acts! After all, the number one rule to teamwork is knowing each other's strengths and weaknesses! Read and Review! Next chapter will be up soon!

- Chris