A young woman stands by the shore of Montauk bay, a small baby cradled in her arms. She looks out across the sea as if waiting for someone, as if the sea were more than just the tumultuous waves and clear blue water. She is pretty, with a kind face and she smiles as she points out a gull flying overhead to her baby. But something about her face is tired, like she was forced to grow up before her time.
The child in her hands is a year old at most and looks perfectly content in his mother's arms. His bright, green eyes took in the world with wonder, drinking in the sea and the open sky thirstily with his admiring gaze. The wind ruffles his dark hair and he laughs, finding joy in the simplest thing. His mother laughs with him and holds him tighter. He buries his head in her shoulder and lets out a small yawn. Though he is still so young, it is clear to any onlooker that the baby loves his mother almost as fiercely as she loves him.
When they have grown tired of the sea, the pair walks away from the water and the young woman spreads out a beach blanket on the sand. While her son plays with his brightly coloured toys, she stares out across the sea once more.
"Poseidon," she whispers. She waits as if she expects a response, but when none comes, she turns back to her baby, helping him scoop up sand into a small, blue bucket.
"Sally?"
If one word could stop the world, for the young woman, Sally, it was the sound of his voice saying her name. She looks up at the man that stands before her and he is just as she remembered. She had memorised the colour of his skin and the way his black hair fell across his forehead, and the way his eyes shined when he was happy. They are gleaming now when he sees them on his beach, the light of his life with their son.
"Poseidon!" Sally exclaims, scrambling to her feet and throwing her arms around his neck. She breathes the smell of him in, feeling like she is where she is meant to be for the first time in a long time. "You came."
"Of course I came," Poseidon replies, "I have waited so long to see you. Is this him? Is this our son?"
Sally bends to scoop the baby up from the blanket. He squirms, hating to be pulled away from his toys, but settles down quickly. "This is Percy," Sally says, holding him against her hip, "Perseus, actually. Percy for short."
"Percy," Poseidon beams, "It is the perfect name for a hero. Brought the original Perseus luck if remember rightly. Can I hold him?"
Sally shifts Percy from her hip and holds him out to his father. "He's not very good with strangers," she says apologetically.
But when Poseidon takes Percy in his arms, the baby stops squirming and lies perfectly still in his arms. Children are often not given the credit they deserve. At times, their knowledge surpasses that of adults, and Percy knows exactly who he is with. In the arms of the sea god, he is truly home. He belongs to the sea, he always will, and he feels its power in the hands of the man that holds him.
"Hello, Percy," Poseidon says softly, "I'm your father. You're a beautiful boy. Your eyes are just like the sea. I can see you'll be powerful, my boy. You'll grow up to be the greatest hero of your generation, I know it. You're my son aren't you?" He chuckles and the baby gurgles, echoing his laugh happily. "I wish I could stay with you, my son. I wish it was possible to see you every day, and your mother. But there is no point dwelling on the impossible, is there? You have to go with your mother, Percy. Grow up and be brave and strong, but above all, be a good man. Make me proud. I love you, son. I love you."
The three sit together, the picture of a perfect family, in the setting sun. Sally leans against Poseidon and they look down at their child, the boy they both love the most, and they know he will always be their greatest treasure.
"I will hold the monsters back as much as I can, Sally," Poseidon says quietly, "I won't break my promise. No harm can come to him. You have to do what you can to keep him safe. The best way is to surround him with mortals, mask his scent so the monsters can't track him down."
"I will," Sally replies, her voice strong. For her baby, she would go to the depths of the underworld and back. "I'll keep him safe."
Poseidon leans over and kisses her forehead. "I have to go back to my world," he says regretfully, "And you to yours. Find happiness, Sally. I always love you, you know that."
"Me too, Poseidon," Sally says, blinking back tears. Separation had hurt the first time but now, when they had finally had the chance to be a happy family, saying goodbye felt like being torn in two.
As the sun dips over the horizon, bleeding red across the sky, the couple stands to rise. Poseidon hands the baby over to his mother, looking lovingly at him one last time. His smile is one Percy will remember for the rest of his life, a golden glow against the summer sky. Even when he forgets his father's face in years to come and forgets this meeting, he will remember the way his father smiled when he saw him.
"Say bye-bye to your daddy, Percy," Sally says, picking up Percy's tiny hand and making him wave. The baby laughs, a bittersweet sounds that rings out across the beach.
"Goodbye, Percy," Poseidon smiles sadly, "Goodbye, Sally."
Poseidon turns to walk away, heading towards the sea with long strides. He jumps into the water, comes up once to wave at the two lone figures on the shore, before disappearing beneath the waves for the last time.
AN: So that's where I am choosing to end this story. I could have gone into nine months worth of detail about the pregnancy but, frankly, I don't think that would have been that interesting to read. Just watch Juno. It pretty much nails the angsty emotions. If you read this far, reviewed, followed and favourited, thank you, thank you, thank you. I really hope you liked the story and if you did, you are already one of the best people to ever exist.
I want to give special thanks to Mandi2341 for her help and to pinkiepie0706 for being an awesome reader. Thanks so much to both of you!
It would feel really wrong to end the story without crediting the songs that helped me write it in the first place because I listened to them 24/7 while writing:
| Holiday (Interlude) - Paramore | Everything Has Changed - Taylor Swift | I See The Light - Mandy Moore & Zachary Levi form the Tangled OST | Bubbly - Colbie Caillat | Still Young - Neon Trees | Fool With Dreams - Framing Hanley | Proof - Paramore | Lasso - The Band Perry | Say Goodbye (Acoustic) - Skillet | I Can't Not Love You - Every Avenue | Back To Me Without You - The Band Perry | See You Again - Carrie Underwood |
I don't know if I have said it enough times but thank you for reading my story!
