Reading: Sun's Heir, Death's Guardian II: A Hero's Peril
V
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Percy Jackson and the Olympians.
Around the time Grover, Tyson and Washington were pulling Percy and Annabeth out of The Labyrinth; Naruto was internally groaning as he drove into the parking lot for San Francisco's Sunrise Films production company. Piper had managed to call him out on his secret agent lie, much to Thalia's amusement, and so he was forced to tell another half-lie:
"Nice," said Piper, a grin on her face.
"You go girl, show him how vicious a pre-teen is," said Leo through his snickers, getting laughs from the demigods.
He had no idea what the scarred men had wanted from them (which was true; he wasn't sure if they were sent to kill them or capture them) and he got his strength and agility from his summer camp,
"A very good summer camp," the kids chirped, well the Greeks plus one Roman did anyway.
not government facilities. Tristan, who was just playing along with the blond for the sake of his daughter, said he had no hard feelings about it so long as the blond agreed to meet with the producer for the film.
"He's laidback like that," said Piper as she smiled brightly.
Both Naruto (and Thalia) reluctantly complied with the request, leading them to the present.
Getting out of his car with a sigh, Naruto wondered where he had gone wrong on the quest to end up outside one of his Dad's domain doorsteps. Maybe he should've used those traps that the Hephaestus Cabin had built into his car.
"Yes," said Leo, "yes, you should have. It would have been so epic!"
No, that was a stupid idea; both the wheel spikes and the oil slick could've caused a huge accident that would've attracted a lot of unwanted attention.
"So that's a no Leo," said Jason with a small smile.
"…Still would've been cool." The mechanic said, his argument weak.
The S.O.L. Engine was a no-go because it wasn't fully tested. The last thing he needed to do was accidently blow himself and his girlfriend up.
"I would really not like that." Thalia said, her arms crossed over her chest and a small smirk on her face.
He was pretty sure that Thalia wouldn't love him anymore if he did that.
"There it is," said Thalia as she nodded in agreement.
Shifting his driver's seat forward, Naruto stepped back to let Thalia out. The ravenette stretched her arms above her head, her back releasing a few soft pops as it loosened up from sitting in the back. Thalia lowered her arms with a sigh before looking at the smiling blond. With a smirk on her face, she poked him in the chest, "Next time, you're sitting in the back with the kid."
"Aw, no sister-in-law bonding time?" Annabeth asked, teasing the two, getting a pink look from Piper and a mild glare of annoyance from Thalia.
"Oh am I really?" Naruto asked teasingly before raising his keys up to dangle in front of her, "Which of us is licensed to drive again?"
"Burn."
"Oh shut it, hothead," Thalia grumbled at Leo's comment.
"Which of us could care less?" Thalia retorted,
"Zing!" Thalia said, a small smirk on her face.
making a grab for her boyfriend's car keys. Naruto quickly retracted the keys and put them in his pocket, smirking as she gave him a mock pout.
Patting the ravenette on the cheek, Naruto gave her another fox-like grin and winked, "Just a few more practice sessions with Chiron, babe, then you can drive to your heart's content."
"Yeah, Thalia, wait for the permit, no need to ruin his ride, like mine," Apollo said mockingly, getting the sky daughter to bristle at the moment of crashing the embodiment of the sun.
"Don't call me babe," Thalia grumbled with distaste as she swatted his hand away.
"Damn right, blondie." The hunter scowled at the name.
Naruto merely laughed and went to the trunk to get the McLean's stuff out of his car. The movie star in question was waiting right there with a small amused smile at their interactions, his daughter giggling.
"See, your inner drama was always there," the love goddess said as she teased her tomboy daughter, getting pink cheeks from said child.
Naruto gave her a half-smile and winked before ruffling her hair, getting an annoyed growl from the shorter and younger girl that made him chuckle.
"Oh, it seems someone is going to love to annoy you," Hazel said.
"Joy," Piper said dryly. It was just what she needed, a hot older guy to tease her for his chuckles.
It was the small annoyances he could provide that made him feel alive.
"Jerk." The charmspeaker pouted.
Once he had retrieved the three bags from his trunk and gave them out to the respective owners, Naruto and Thalia then followed Tristan into the building and went up the elevator to the top of the building to the twenty-seventh floor. The hallways were rather expensive in design; not to mention flashy like the God who apparently ran the company.
"Typical," Artemis said with a roll of her eyes.
"Hey, I got to do business in style." Her brother assured most sternly, but that carefree smile on his face didn't help his argument.
As they walked past a wall of employee photos, Tristan paused and looked at the moderately larger image in the center. He looked from the photo to Naruto and then back before scratching his head, "Well...That's interesting."
"Ha, looks like his cover is blown again, all thanks to sunspot," Ares snickered.
"What is?" Piper asked before following her father's gaze and looking back at the blond teen following them. She repeated this several times before furrowing her brows and asking Naruto, "I thought you said you didn't have any connections in the business?"
"Busted," Nico laughed along with the others.
"I don't," Naruto replied as he stared at the picture before he clapped a hand over his eyes and sighed. "I hate him sometimes. I truly, truly do."
"No you don't, you love me! I mean, who couldn't?" he asked the group, getting quiet blinks. Apollo folded his arms over his chest and pouted. "You guys suck, seriously."
"Do you know Lyre?" Tristan asked curiously. "A relative?"
"You bet that dimpled smile he is, Tristan," Apollo said as he laughed.
Thalia, who was smirking at the whole exchange, gave her boyfriend a grin that made him want to cry.
"Of course she would have a grin like that," the son of the sea said dryly, looking at his cousin in question.
It was her mischievous grin, one that she had gotten during their few months as a couple.
"Looks like someone's rubbing off on you," said Apollo with a wink to his hunting half-sister. Thalia smirked back at him. She could get behind that.
It showed up every now and again when he would tease one of his siblings, usually Lee and his girlfriend Katie Gardner, but sometimes it would show up when the moment was against him. This happened to be one of those times.
"Sad for you bro," Leo said with little sympathy.
"It's his father actually," the daughter of Zeus said as Naruto hung his head. He really hated admitting that he was related to one of the most notorious womanizers in the universe, sometimes anyway.
Apollo sputtered at that.
"Pops is the one with the number one title," he objected quickly, getting his father to glare at him.
You'd be surprised when that sort of information would come in handy, not that you'd ever want to need it. Naruto was sure if his late sensei or Kakashi ever found out about some of the things his father had taught him, he'd be doomed to a life of pestering from perverts.
The women turned to Apollo, disgust in their features as the sun god started to sweat a bit. So what if he taught his kid some awesome things for the bedroom? Other Thalia should be thankful when that time came!
His mother, on the other hand, would probably try to find a way to slaughter a God out of sheer feminine fury or motherly rage.
"Loving this woman, I truly am," Hera said with a nod of respect along with the other goddesses.
Not something he wanted to happen, and also something he really wanted to try and prevent. Hence, why he kept that sort of information secret.
"For now, wait till you two hook up!" Apollo teased the hunter who blanched at the thought with a bright red face.
Artemis punched her brother in the arm for that, getting a yelp of pain from the god of the arts.
"Really?!" Piper exclaimed as she stared at the amused older girl and the depressed blond standing next to her.
"Honest to gods, that's Whisker's dad," Thalia commented before jokingly commenting. "Maybe in another life I'd have hooked up with him, instead."
"Well, you did call him hot," Percy said as he snickered at the flushed hunter who was disgusted by the idea of hooking up with a god. Not a positive relationship.
"You're hilarious," dryly commented Naruto while his mirthful girlfriend snickered. He sighed and looked at the McLean family's questioning eyes, or rather, distrustful in Piper's case.
"Like I said, sharpest one I have," said Aphrodite as she smiled proudly.
"More like the only one," said Athena. Her mocking tone got a pretty glare from her fellow goddess.
"He and my mom are...separated in a way.
"They're married though," Hera pointed out, "unless she divorced him. I could see it happening."
"You're hilarious," Apollo said with a roll of his eyes as he mockingly clapped his hands.
I took Mom's name to stay out of the spotlight."
"And where did 'Naruto' come from?" Piper asked. It was then Naruto's turn to grin mischievously, something that Thalia took notice of and caused her own smirk to widen slightly.
"Wow, opened that can of worms Piper," Hazel said with a mirthful shake of her head. Piper groaned at the phrasing of her question.
"Well, I'd have thought either your dad or your school would've taught you this already, but since it's come to this I guess I have to step forward.
"Don't you dare!" Piper said, her face red with embarrassment.
You see, Piper, when a mommy and a daddy love each other very much they decide to have a baby. So first Mommy and Daddy take all their clothes off and then climb into bed. Though they could also climb into a car, onto a table, sit on a chair-" Naruto's rather humorous answer was cut off by a red faced Piper.
"Oh, he got you good on that one," Leo said as he snickered with Nico.
"Shut up!" the love child said while she fumed and crossed her arms angrily. Jason was smiling a bit, thinking it was cute.
"I know that!" the girl exclaimed with a blush while her father laughed along with Thalia.
"Traitor." Piper pouted at her father laughing at her other.
Huffing, the embarrassed thirteen year old rephrased her question. "Is your name really Naruto?"
"Do you think I would choose a name like that willingly?" the blond retorted with an arched brow. Her argument now invalid from the point he gave, Piper gave a little snort before turning away from the now smirking blond.
"Jerk."
"Feel my pain, Piper," said Percy.
Naruto shook his head, smile still in place, before looking at Thalia with a grin. The raven-haired girl nodded back, a silent agreement coming between them.
"We're almost at Lyre's office," Tristan said once his daughter had considerably calmed down. "I'm sure that the two of you have to find a place to stay so we should get this all done now."
"Well, they kinda have a place to go," Jason said, really wanting to see the meeting of his other and other sister.
"Let's just get it over with," Naruto agreed with a sigh before once again following the McLean family through the hall with Thalia at his side. Piper had gone silent, but still sent the occasional glance over her shoulder at them, her eyes changing to match both Thalia's and Naruto's unique shades whenever she met the opposite's gaze.
"Aww," the lady of doves cooed, "that's how you know they like each other." She smiled proudly at Piper, who flushed a little at the unique shades for her eyes, especially since one was the same as Jason's.
Finally, after a walk through the ridiculously long hallway, and passing several paintings, statues and murals of a certain deity,
"Vain," Artemis said, mocking her brother in return for his teasing.
"Oh please, if you bothered to stay stationary you'd have a place like that, too." Her twin said with a smug smile.
they arrived at a very expensive looking door. It gleamed as though made of gold and the logo of the company was on it.
As Tristan's hand lifted to knock, the door was pulled open and a familiar face to the two older demigods beamed from the other side of the room. Apollo had ditched the Konohan uniform, but still kept the face of Minato Namikaze. Now he was wearing a dark blue blazer with a white V-neck shirt underneath, and slacks that matched it. Hanging from his neck by a golden chain was a gold medallion engraved with a sun that looked almost Greek on design, but wasn't.
"Oh no," said Apollo. He groaned at the sight of his less then fun side.
Artemis scowled and crossed her arms. "Wonderful,"
Upon noticing the slight difference in the sun's design, Naruto stiffened slightly before looking to the Sun God's eyes and inwardly moaning in dismay. Rather than the warm ocean they usually were, two almost frosty blue orbs stared back at him.
"Finally seeing a Roman God, nice." Hazel said.
"Trust me, not nice." Apollo said to her.
"Tristan McLean! I haven't seen you in ages! What brings you here?" Apollo asked after briefly glancing at the two following him. The actor smiled and offered a hand, which was taken by the disguised god with a grin.
"Just here to tell you that I think I found the right person for Theseus' role," Tristan said
The wine god was grumbling a bit, glaring at Apollo for making a movie about that sea brat.
Apollo on the other hand was contemplating on making one.
before gesturing behind him. "And was I surprised when I found out you already knew him!"
"Were you?" Apollo asked as his smile strained slightly before relaxing as he reclaimed his hand. He turned to the side and gestured into the office. "Come in and give me a minute. I was just on my way out to check on something."
"Totally saw them coming," said Apollo with a grin. A jerk he was, but his Roman counterpart was also a good prophet.
The McLean family entered and Thalia cautiously followed them before turning to her boyfriend, who had yet to make a move. He glanced at her and nodded before returning his attention to Apollo, prompting Thalia to enter the office. Apollo stepped out and shut the door behind him before facing his son.
"Naruto," the unnaturally calm God greeted with a nod.
"A calm Apollo is a scary Apollo," Hermes said with pursed lips, getting nods all around besides from the god himself.
"Phoebus," Naruto greeted as his eyes narrowed slightly.
"Ooo." Apollo winced. At the demigod's confused glances, Apollo elaborated. "He hates that name."
He really didn't like the Roman side of his father sometimes. Apollo wasn't much of a warmonger, but he did become more business oriented and serious when he became Phoebus Apollo as Naruto dubbed this personality, not to mention having his ego inflate tenfold.
"Is that even possible?" Thalia asked her matron, who nodded with sad annoyance.
"Not my fault," said the god in question.
When he had first met Phoebus Apollo, the two had not gotten along well. Mostly because Naruto, as a Greek descendant, was a bit laid back in comparison when it came to just about everything.
"Yes, and we know how anal our Roman selves are." Ares grunted, getting some bland looks from the Roman demigods.
"Apollo," corrected the God with a frown, "My name is still Apollo."
"You're Roman," Naruto commented as his arms crossed, "And you know that some called you Phoebus to differentiate your personas. I'm sure I could convince Diana to call you that if we ever crossed paths."
"Well, my other seems to like him, it is possible," Artemis said with a grin to her brother, who blanched at the very thought.
"...Smartass brat," grumbled the Roman aspect of Apollo with a scowl, "Why are you and Thalia here?"
"Why else? I have a quest that so happened to bring me to your doorstep," the shorter blond said before frowning, "And what's wrong with Thalia-chan being here? She's my girlfriend, and she insisted on coming, but that's not the point."
"I smell tension." Aphrodite smiled viciously.
"Whoa, wait a damn second here," the Roman Sun God said with a hand raised. He looked back over his shoulder through the glass window to his right at the girl in question before looking back at the teen, "You're still with her?"
"…What's that suppose to mean?" Thalia asked, turning a glare at the Greek aspect of the current god on the scene.
"Hey, hey," Apollo said with his hands raised, "Whatever he says isn't on my neck, my Roman self is a dick and a half."
Thalia still didn't like where this was going.
"So what if I am?" Naruto asked, already dreading how this conversation was going.
"What are you doing, kid?!" Apollo asked him before knocking a few times on his slightly shorter son's head. "Hello?! You have a goddess waiting for you. Literally!"
"Hecate, hm?" Hera said with a small smile at that, taking a side-glance at Thalia. True, this demigod could do better.
After a moment of gaping at his Roman father, Naruto asked, "Are you talking about Hecate?"
"I'm talking about Trivia, yes," Apollo said before grinning suggestively.
"I don't like that grin." Thalia grumbled, not liking this chapter at all now.
"I feel the same Thalia, trust me," said Artemis as she frowned along with her lieutenant.
"There's the perks that come with being with her; the sex,
"Pig." Artemis sneered toward the Roman God.
the free loving, the occasional affair to liven up the bedroom.
Hera scowled in disgust along with her stepdaughter. She honestly felt sorry for the boy if he had to deal with this.
And then there's the whole immortality thing that comes along with it."
"Huh, now that would be interesting." Ares said. His other would love that, he bet, fighting a kid like that any time. Awesome.
"...I sometimes am ashamed of you," admitted the teen, getting a scowl from his father, before he scowled back and replied. "And I'm not leaving Thalia-chan just because there's a Goddess who wants to jump me!"
"At least he's committed to a relationship," Demeter said. "Some demigods would jump at that chance."
"Only the idiots jump to things like that without thinking, like my rancher of a kid," said Ares. He chuckled darkly. "Moron."
"I'm just saying there's more fish out there," the Roman God said. "A Goddess is just the most beneficial. There's that little Bellona girl, what was her name?"
"Really trying to set up a little girl with a man?" Aphrodite huffed. She mulled it over in her head before nodding with a small smile. "I can go with that if it adds some drama."
"Of course you would," Artemis shook her head disbelief.
"Rey-chan is way too young for me!" Naruto argued before adding. "Physically anyway."
"She is, uh, very mentally mature," Jason said, getting a questioning raised brow from his girlfriend, "I'm just being honest."
Piper just huffed at that, turning back to the story.
"Says the twenty-two-year-old dating a sixteen-year-old," countered the God with a smirk.
"Hey, technically I'm nineteen," the hunter argued with a pout.
"Yeah, but you still came back as a fifteen year old," the god of prophecy countered playfully, getting a scowl from Thalia.
At Naruto's growl he continued, "Well if you're going to be so picky why not go after Cyrene?"
"Who?" asked everyone.
"...Cyrene is like my great-great-great-great-grandniece!" exclaimed the blond before being shushed by Apollo,
"Only you," Artemis said in distaste, "Only you would offer up one of your legacies to your son."
"Hey, back in the day it was a common thing!"
who looked over his shoulder at the waiting group of three with a reassuring wave and smile as they looked at him curiously. Turning back to Naruto, Apollo began to lead the blond away on a walk down the hall.
"Just taking a father-son stroll," said Hermes with a smirk. "Reminds me of Poseidon and Percy before the Titanomachy, always slipping aside to have little chit-chats."
The god and child of the sea both grinned slightly.
"The funny thing about those cabins is technically, none of those kids are related," Apollo explained to his son. "Unless they have the same mortal parent."
"Oh, that is just a twisted idea to put into our heads," Percy said as he blanched along with the rest of the demigods.
"Well, it is true and it has happened before," Aphrodite said as she shrugged.
"...We share the same Godly parents," Naruto growled, "We are brothers and sisters."
"Of course you are," Apollo sarcastically said, "Every child in the cabin of Mercury, I'm sorry, Hermes, has the same father."
"Ouch, sting much?" Hermes said with a frown to his brother.
"Like I said, a total dick and a half."
"That's different!" Naruto snapped, brushing the arm off his shoulders and glaring at the Roman, "Look, I know that you Gods supposedly don't have DNA, but you're made up of something that makes you Apollo and not another mini-Zeus or Jupiter or whatever. All of us kids, even the Romans, have that something within us. Cabins don't just represent the parents, they represent our family tree, our family bonds."
"Aw," said Hestia after reading that passage. She smiled at that, it was such a sweet thing to say.
"Now you sound like Vesta," Apollo snorted out before continuing tiredly.
And Apollo just ruined that sweet feeling, Hestia frowned.
"The point is that you could have someone you deserve! You're more than a demigod, you are just shy of joining the ranks of Immortals!"
Thalia's hackles rose at that. Someone he deserved? What? She was suddenly undeserving? Her feminine pride, hunter or not, took a tiny blow to that.
"Not if it means leaving behind one of the first friends I made in this world, that you brought me to without asking, by the way!" Naruto growled with an accusing finger to his father.
Thalia had a ghosting smile on her face, her other was lucky to have a guy like this. She really was. The hunter wondered what that slight pang of jealousy came from. She was happy like this, right?
"Not to mention that you're suggesting the girl I like, maybe even truly love, is someone I shouldn't be with!"
"He said it!" Aphrodite squealed. "Oh, the love story is coming to fruition!" She clapped excitedly with her sudden fit of giddy giggles.
Thalia and everyone else closed their hands over their ears at the outburst, but the hunter in question did have a blush on her face.
"She's beneath you!" Apollo argued.
"What?!" The hunter shouted in rage with static blue arcs around her. Jason also had a sparking look in his eye. God or not, that was the wrong thing to say.
"She's Jupiter's daughter!" protested the teen.
"Well, not really," Hazel pointed out softly.
"She is Greek!" Apollo hissed as his eyes narrowed.
"And there it is," Athena said coldly, glaring at the Roman God.
"A Greek. You would rather have a Greek than a Roman or a Goddess!"
"Oh, that's his problem." Hades said. His eyes rolled. "He wants to set him up with a Roman or a Goddess. Probably to mess with his Greek half."
"I could see that, yeah," said the Greek half with narrowed eyes.
"You're talking to your Greek son!" Naruto pointed out through gritted teeth.
"Yes, you'd think he would be a bit more testy around him." Zeus mused in interest.
"You are the reincarnation of a God!" said the Roman Apollo before clasping his hands onto the teen's shoulders.
"So with that, he sees that the boy is beyond the title of Greek or Roman." Poseidon stated with narrow eyed thought look on his face.
His appearance turned gold for a brief moment, before revealing the debatably warmer side of Apollo, the Greek aspect. His attire had changed to the tank top and jeans combo, "Naruto, I forced you to take a burden you should have never bared. You deserve the best in return for what you've done so far, that's all I'm trying to say. I just want the best for you."
"There I am, hi me!" Apollo waved obnoxiously to his other self.
"Rather kind of you to say that," his sister said, clearly she felt the Greek part of her brother was better for her nephew, despite his behavior. Far better then that Roman asshole!
The two remained silent before the God shook his head and his appearance became that of what it was before, the Roman aspect of the Sun God in mortal disguise. Apollo shook his head and held it. "Whoa, blacked out for a second there, did my Greek-self say something emotionally stupid?"
"…Total dick," the sun god said as he pouted with crossed arms. "That was super touching and he goes about that it was emotionally stupid. Dick."
Naruto stared at his father with furrowed brows before shaking his head. He was still angry and with good reason: his dad had just directly disapproved of a girl and then indirectly told him to follow his heart, even if that meant being with said girl. Stupid multiple personality disorder.
"Hey, how do you think we feel about it?" Hermes asked, he wasn't even a thief as a Roman! He was a salesman!
"How's about this, we agree to disagree," suggested the blond demigod as he tried reign in his temper.
"It's the only way to deal with him like this, honestly," said Artemis with a huff and crossed arms.
Apollo shrugged. "Your choice. I'm just saying there's more fish out there, and you could always catch a bigger better one to eat and enjoy."
"Fish analogies, really?" Poseidon said as he frowned a bit. Hades and Zeus had small smiles on their faces at their brother's annoyance.
Clenching his teeth Naruto decided to change the subject before he really got pissed. "Why are you using that face anyway?"
"Aside from the fact that I can chose whatever face I want, I find it easier to conduct business with a mature face rather than one of a heartthrob teenager," commented the God before he smirked and gestured to his appearance.
"What's the scouter say about his ego level?" Hermes asked his smith brother.
"Over…eight thousand, nine hundred and fifty seven."
"…Bro, at least do the joke right."
"But I guess no matter what, you just can't change the truth: I'm a sexy Mo-Fo no matter where I come from."
"Ah, there it is…it's over nine thousand…and fifty two." Hephaestus said with a nod as he read the device.
"Heph, its dead now, stop beating it with your hammer…please." The god of travelers said with a shake of his head.
"Humble, too," Naruto sarcastically added before he said. "I thought you'd already gone through the change a few months ago during New Year's Eve."
"He was changing?" asked everyone, voices laced in disbelief.
"It's easier to keep an eye on the biz when you're a part of it," Apollo replied with a shrug, "And lets face it, I wouldn't do anything as a Greek but read porn in the office or make Pornos with myself as the star."
Hermes turned to his brother. "It's true, isn't it?"
"I plead the fifth." Apollo mumbled, not looking into his thieving brother's eye.
"Like you don't have someone to give you the hanky panky on the side here," scoffed Naruto.
"And you're married now," Hera said as she frowned at her stepson, whose back straightened somewhat at the reminder.
"Don't compare me with my other self!" Apollo said with a frown.
The demigods looked surprised, so he was less womanizing in this form?
His grin reappeared as he quickly added. "You'll only feel worse about you."
Well, that dashed some respect from the demigods.
"There you go again with that humble trait we all share," snarked Naruto as he sighed. "Look, I didn't come here to argue over which side of you is the best, you're both equally annoying,
"True." The rest of the gods answered unanimously, besides Apollo of course.
"Traitors."
McLean brought me here for a job I said I needed."
"And why did you say that?" Apollo asked as his smile became a confused frown. "I had a brief vision of McLean and his little Greek daughter appearing in front of my door, but much more clean and not as emotionally ruffled."
"Seems that sight needs some fine tuning," said Aphrodite with a smirk to sun god.
"Hey, visions change all the time. Who knows what happens next?" The god of prophecy countered sternly.
"That's partially why I said I needed a job," Naruto grunted as he pressed his two fingers to his head in an effort to stave off the coming headache. "Look Phoebus–"
"Apollo."
"Grind the wheel nephew," the goddess of the hunt cheered on with a large smile.
"Whatever," Naruto grumbled before looking up. "I have to get to Camp Jupiter. Today."
"You think that's a good idea, Fishcake?" Apollo asked, using his son's own dreaded nickname in retaliation for being called Phoebus. Naruto growled at him before shaking his head. He was letting this get too personal, and he was surprised that Helios was keeping quiet for so long.
"Really, some comments would have been nice," Demeter said, she found them quite funny at times. Hestia frowned slightly as she continued to read, obviously disagreeing.
"It's what has to be done to save Bianca's life," sighed out the blond after he shook off his aggravation.
"Alright, well I suppose I could give you a hand," Apollo said with a shrug before smirking. "But you have to audition for Theseus' role."
"Well, it gives my other a reason to hate him more it seems." The god of wine said with a frown.
"Yeah, fine, whatever," Naruto agreed readily. "Can I get Thalia now and go?"
"I don't think you understood me, Naruto," Apollo said as he leaned down slightly with a grin on his face. "I meant: Audition. Now."
"Oh, nice." The sun god grinned. "My kid on the big screen. No doubt he'll get the role." He hummed in thought. "Maybe I should get this film going, too."
"Don't you dare, Apollo," said Dionysus with a purple face.
"Heh, I can do what I want with the arts, D, you got no say in them." Apollo said with a triumphant grin.
"You have got to be fucking kidding me!" exclaimed the blond in disbelief.
Hestia pursed her lips at the use of such language after she was forced to read it.
His sun-like eyes searched the slightly warmer than usual ice blue eyes that were looking at him only to find no sign of this being a joke.
"Our Roman sides aren't very funny, are they?" Hermes asked with a tilt of his head. Getting nods in return, it was true, they just didn't seem to have a funny bone unless they made the joke.
In fact all that was within the icy ocean blues was the mirth Apollo found in the situation his son was in.
"Total dick, but I still have to agree," Apollo said. "This is funny."
Naruto stormed out of the building's elevator with a slightly shocked Thalia following behind him.
"Star struck Thalia?" Nico asked with an amused look upon his pale face.
"I'm warning you ghost boy, don't push me right now." Was the stern retort from the hunter.
He was livid, he was embarrassed and he was this close to flipping his shit!
"Oh, what did you do? Come on!" Apollo wanted to know eagerly.
Maybe that's why his portrayal of Jack Nicholson's monologue from A Few Good Men was so good it got a standing ovation.
"Oh, that's classic." Ares grinned along with nods all around.
"My kid's a beast!" The god of arts cheered.
And here he was trying to not get the part just to spite his father's Roman aspect, when all that accomplished was doing just what he intended not to do!
"Sweetie, you can't help it if you're good at something." The lady of doves consoled the blond within the story.
...That...was...amazing, commented a familiar voice within his head.
"Oh, there he is," Hades smirked.
And where were you?! Naruto all but demanded of Helios. He could see the once Faded Greek God appear in front of him with his hands raised, prompting Naruto to stop walking towards his car. Thalia stopped before walking into her paused boyfriend and followed his gaze, frowning when she could see nothing.
"She wishes she could see double blonds," said Apollo. He grinned wolfishly at getting a sputtering retort from the hunter and a slap from his sister. Ah routines, such good comedic reels.
Hey, I wasn't about to get us thrown out of what was one of our only chances of legitimately getting into the Other Camp, Helios defended himself before pointing at his incarnation. Your attitude didn't help any either.
"Yeah, he might have started a spat with Phoebus," Athena said with a smirk at the name. It was something she was going to use from now on now that she knew it would annoy the Roman God.
"It's not like I wanted to be annoyed, but damn he gets worse when he's in that aspect," complained the blond. He was then elbowed in the side, "Ow! Thalia-chan, don't hit me!"
"Stop talking to nothing then! And why did you stop walking?" inquired the girl with narrowed eyes.
"Oh come on, you'd think she'd know about him talking to nothing like a crazy person," Apollo said with an eye roll.
"Well, the crazies are fun in their own way," said Aphrodite with a finger to her chin as she hummed in thought what that could mean.
Rolling his own eyes, Naruto gestured to the slightly offended 'nothing' and explained his actions.
"Yeah, Hel's not liking that kind of talk about him. He is far from a 'nothing' Thalia," said Apollo as he playfully frowned at the lieutenant of the hunters.
"Helios finally decided to reveal himself and is standing there."
"Not for me," Thalia grumbled as her arms crossed, "I swear if you're making this up we're going to have issues."
"Like they don't already?" Percy asked.
"Or one coming up in a blond, blue-eyed Superman?" Leo added.
"Oh, I can't wait!" The goddess of love squealed in giddy.
"He's not," Kyu commented as he manifested between the two demigods. His eyes were squinting in Helios' direction. "If you look hard enough you can see some sort of figure. And from my connection with the Kit, I can hear...something. It sounds like faint whispering."
"So even the spirit hears voices in his head?" Apollo asked with a grin.
See? The spirit animal can confirm your sanity, Helios joked, getting Naruto to glare at him.
"You're not funny," grumbled the blond,
"I think he is," Hades said with a faint grin while his nephews were cracking up at Helios' joke.
who was thoroughly annoyed at this quest's strange turn. He looked down at the medallion in his right hand that his father had given him after doing as he was requested. Apparently it would give both him and Thalia a free pass, but no more than two would be welcomed.
Peacefully, that is.
"And that isn't ominous at all." Jason murmured.
"There it was again!" Kyu commented, pointing in the direction of Helios. "A tiny whisper, almost...human."
"Alright, fine, so you're not crazy," Thalia said before giving her boyfriend a grin. "Well...no more than usual anyway."
"Yeah, but me thinks you like that crazy part to him," said Percy as he grinned at the hunter, who crossed her arms with a frown on her face directed at him.
Tapping the raven-haired girl on the nose, Naruto replied with a grin of his own. "Yeah, but that's what makes me irresistible."
Thalia scowled with pink cheeks at the grinning Percy. Okay, maybe his crazy had a charm to it, but not by much, nope. Not at all.
"Part of your charm?" Thalia joked with a smirk.
Don't agree with the current conversation! Thalia cried out in her head with dismay while her scowl deepened.
"Damn straight," Naruto said with a smirk of his own.
"Ugh, both of you go get a room," Kyu mocked. "But be safe~!"
Thalia flushed and her cheeks burned hotly when Apollo and Aphrodite winked at her. Urg! Stupid gods.
"Alright, that's enough out of you," said the Guardian as he raised his right arm where the bracelet sat. The ruby shone while Kyu dissipated back into it. His 'spirit animal' now cowed, Naruto pointed at the manifestation of his past life who was grinning like a loon. "You too. Last thing we need is the security guards wondering why-What are you smiling at?"
"Wh-What was that!?" The two teens looked behind them to see the daughter of Tristan McLean staring in shock at where Kyu once hovered.
"And so, it has begun," Leo said in a deep voice.
Piper flickered her gaze between Thalia and Naruto before looking past them to something outside. Her eyes noticeably widened and she screamed while pointing at something beyond the gates of the building's parking garage. "What is that!?"
"Pipes indeed," Annabeth surmised, getting pushed by the blushing child of love.
Helios had vanished, Naruto and Thalia turned around once again to see a giant winged serpent staring at them. A long tongue, possibly three feet in length, flicked out while two snake-like eyes narrowed on them. The couple turned and shared a look of disbelief before Naruto turned to Piper.
"Oh, oh, he his going to be dropping major bombage on her mist clouded head," said Hermes, who grinned impishly at the thought.
"I'll answer your questions after you answer mine: What are you doing down here Piper?" inquired the blond teenager while his girlfriend reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out her canister of mace.
"To silence her." The mechanic said in a low whisper.
"Leo, dude, morbid," Nico said. He nodded and grinned. "Nice one."
"I try."
"Shut up you morons," said Piper, her arms crossed as she huffed.
"M-Mister Lyre wanted to talk to my dad alone about a new movie idea, something about ninjas," Piper stuttered out
"Hm, well, I did marry one, so why not?" the god himself asked aloud.
as she stared in horror at the creature waiting beyond the gate. "Why...Why is it just sitting there? What does it want?"
"In order of your questions," Naruto began as he stepped in front of Piper and clenched his fists. "That thing you saw was my pet fox. That thing out there is a Drakon...Aethiopian by the wingspan.
"Good eye." The goddess of the hunt nodded.
It can't come here because of my dad.
"You're welcome!"
And it most likely wants to eat either me or my tasty girlfriend!"
"You know, I wonder if he means eatable tasty or…" Aphrodite trailed off with a suggestive smile that made Thalia nearly pass out at the thought since her face was so red.
He sent a glare to the girl that elbowed him in the side before looking behind him at the demigoddess shaking like a leaf.
"Of course I would be," Piper muttered, she had every right to.
He thought back to his prophecy and a smile crossed his face before chuckling with a grin. Looking forward he muttered. "Three take the Fire Steed neither West nor East..."
"You have been offered a spot on the quest Piper, do you accept this responsibility?" Apollo asked her in a serious tone, getting eye rolls from everyone at his attempt at a joke.
"What?" Piper and Thalia asked. Naruto looked at his girlfriend with a grin.
"Told ya I'd meet up with my quest mates in California," he said before looking at Piper. "By the way...Did I mention that the two of us are Greek demigods? Oh...and so are you."
"Casual, I like it," Percy smiled, just go out and say it. Simple as that.
Piper stared at him in shock while Thalia roughly punched her boyfriend in the arm. Upon getting hit, the blond glared at her with a frown on his face. "Would you stop doing that? I'm not invincible, you know!"
"You really like to hit on him," Jason said to his sister, who flushed at the same phrasing the blond on the screen tended to use.
"Shut up Jay," she said with a stern scowl on her face.
"Don't drop bombs like that so nonchalantly then, you idiot!" Scolded the daughter of Zeus. They heard a muffled thump and looked down to the unconscious form of Piper before looking at each other once again.
Piper groaned with pink cheeks, she passed out?! That had gotten some chuckles all around.
"She's so dramatic," Naruto mock complained as he crouched down and picked the girl up in a cradling carry. "And light. Seriously, she's like a feather!"
Jason frowned at the sight while Piper flushed a bit from it.
Thalia rolled her eyes before jokingly asking, "Where do you think she gets that from?"
"Ha-ha...Do you think it's alright to just leave her like this? No, we have to take her back upstairs," Naruto said, turning to the elevator. The Drakon gave a bit of a roar and Naruto called over his shoulder, "Oh shut up, we'll deal with you later!"
"Wow, so causal with the smack talk," Leo said with respect.
"Yes, because we talk like that to all the drakons." The green-eyed child of the sea said dryly.
As they boarded the elevator, Thalia asked, "So how did you know what kind of Drakon that was?"
"I like to read, remember?" Naruto said before reaching over and pressing the top floor's button while still keeping Piper in his arms.
Jason was frowning a bit and Leo snickered. "Oh you are jellin' bro."
"Shut up."
After doing so he looked down at the girl in amusement when she mumbled. "Think she's gonna forget what we said?"
"No," said the demigoddess in question, arms crossed.
"Knowing your luck, no," Thalia commented with a smirk as she pocketed her disguised bronzed spear. "What do you think Annie and Percy are doing right now?"
"Probably something lame like arts and crafts," Naruto replied, unaware of how very incorrect he was.
"We wish," Percy and Annabeth said as one.
For at that moment as the two got in the elevator; Annabeth Chase was preparing to lead her first quest, having chosen Percy and Grover to take with her as they explored the Labyrinth. After getting some control over her nerves and excitement,
Percy was muttering that it wasn't exciting at all.
Annabeth started giving one of her fellow cabin mates instructions on how to properly care for Washington. Percy was trying to convince Tyson that he'd be fine, but the poor Cyclops was far too concerned to take his brother's word at face value. Grover, perhaps was the luckiest of the three while preparing, getting a very concerned nymph to glue herself to him as they waited for the quest to begin.
"And the satyr has more game then us at the time," Percy said with a chuckle, getting some laughs from his friends.