There's no such thing as too much fun, and as someone who spent the last year of their life as a prisoner in their own home, Percy knew that all too well. Percy's newfound determination was quickly tested when dinnertime was announced. But Percy was nothing if not obstinate.
The pavilion was full of people and more than half of them were boys. Percy hid behind Hera, his new mother as they entered and they all sat down at the empty previously empty Hera table and Percy sat between Hera and Artemis, shivering in his seat under the gazes of all of these boys. The boys didn't know why he was quivering, or for that matter, who he was, and that caused them to stare all the more, causing him to shiver more before Hera wrapped her arm around his shoulder and rubbed his arm comfortingly. Artemis shot glares at all of the boys quickly before they turned around and gained a suddenly renewed interest in their meals. Aphrodite was doing an excellent job of providing a distraction as well, waving sensually at any boy unfortunate enough to make eye contact with her, causing many boys to suddenly stand up and dash out of the dining hall while covering their crotches.
To say that Percy was one of the safest people in the world at the moment would be an understatement, but his relative safety was counterbalanced by his paranoia and fear at the presence of all of these boys. Images of Gabe's younger 'clients' flooded into his mind, making him feel sick to his stomach. The only reason that he didn't vomit on the spot was the aura of calm that Hera was exerting. The food was excellent, and the nymphs were very kind, but there was something eating at Percy as he sat amongst his new family.
"Where's Silena?" He asked, looking around the hall, scanning the faces of all of the girls in the room, looking for his first friend. He purposefully skimmed over all of the boys, trying to remain calm. He finally realized that she wasn't there and he slyly snuck out from in between his mother and his sister as he went to search for the girl that nursed him back to health. As he searched the camp's grounds, looking for his raven haired savior, he finally found her and his blood boiled at the sight. Silena was being forced against the back of one of the cabins by a blonde haired boy with blue eyes. Despite his fear, Percy threw himself forward at the boy, ramming his shoulder into the boy's hips, knocking him off of Silena. Silena grabbed Percy and threw him over her shoulder, running back toward the pavilion with Percy's arms wrapped around her neck. Percy stared back at the pursuing figure, and he had a flashback of one of the first times that he had tried to run away from Gabe.
Percy's breathe quickened and he wrapped his arms around Silena tighter, tears streaming down his face as the glaring demigod chased after the pair, slowing only when he saw the collection of goddesses and stepped back, running back toward the cabins.
"Mom!" Silena gasped, running up to Aphrodite, Percy was still clinging to her shoulder, so she sat down in his seat and rubbed his back as she began her tale. "I was coming back from my cabin, and I was cornered by another camper, I don't know his name, but he was blonde…and he had blue eyes, and he forced me against the Poseidon cabin, and he was trying to get me to take off my shirt when Percy came back and knocked him over…he didn't do anything, but I was worried, and Percy is freaking out." Silena finished and Percy slowly detached from her neck and buried his face in her chest.
"Don't leave." He begged, his tears wetting her orange shirt. She whispered comforting words in his ears and he whimpered quietly, causing almost all of the girls in the camp to coo, including Artemis, who gave Hera a shrug and looked down at her hands in embarrassment. Hera rubbed her back and smiled kindly, surprising Artemis. Artemis smiled at her mother-in-law and then turned to Silena. "Please don't leave."
"Never, I'll stay with you forever Percy." Silena insisted and Percy smiled, hugging her closer. Artemis looked over at Silena piteously, she would never survive the hunt, she could never make the oath, much less keep it. "It'll all be okay." Hera noted the emotional display and transported the entire table to her cabin, allowing the entry of the gods and the demigods.
"I'm afraid that that won't work Ms. Beauregard, Percy here is going to be coming with me to travel with the hunt-." Artemis began, but Silena interrupted.
"I don't care, I'll go with you, I'll swear the oath, I'll follow along with the hunt, I'll do anything, just, please, let me stay with Percy." Silena begged, and Artemis looked pleadingly at Aphrodite who simply shrugged. Percy looked over at Artemis and gave her his own pleading look, causing her will to buckle and her hands to curl into fists before she groaned and reached out, hugging Silena and Percy.
"I'm going to have to find some way to counter those puppy-dog eyes in the future, but for now, you can come with us." Artemis relented, giving Percy a pointed stare. Percy smiled and hugged her back, holding onto Silena with one arm and Artemis with the other. Hera looked on contentedly, and looked over to see Athena and Aphrodite discussing something.
"I'm telling you, the boy could help your daughter." Aphrodite insisted, elbowing Athena's arm lightly. "He might even be able to help Thalia and Luke with their destinies as well." She remarked offhandedly, when in fact, she was carefully calculating all of her remarks.
Hera didn't care, the sun was setting, and soon Artemis would have to go, and Percy would have to go with her. "Artemis?" Hera asked. Artemis stepped out of Percy's death grip and toward her mother in law. "You'll have to leave soon, and unfortunately, that leaves little time for you to explain yourself to your hunters-."
"I could take care of Percy for tonight-…" Athena stopped suddenly when all eyes turned on her and she was suddenly very nervous. "Well, I was just thinking that Percy probably would never get a chance to visit me, being constantly on the move, and I assume that I won't end up being the 'cool' aunt, so, I may as well start now with my bribery to make a good impression." Athena reasoned, but Hera knew the real reason, because she felt it too. All of the gods wished for some sense of emotional balance, but they were never able to love anyone. Their children were distant, and often reproachful. Their own godly children outgrew them in mere moments, and their own brothers and sisters had the same problems that they did, so a golden opportunity to raise a child was something that no one could say no to.
"It's a good idea." Everyone's eyes widened and they all turned toward the least likely person to agree with Athena; Aphrodite. "And I think that Percy would love having a chance to catch up with his aunt before he moved in with his sister. Right, Percy?" Aphrodite inquired, looking down at the exhausted tot who was beginning to fall asleep in Artemis' arms. "That's a yes! It's settled then, Athena will take Percy tonight into tomorrow, and Artemis will explain to her girls what's going on, and tomorrow evening, Athena will return Percy to Artemis, hopefully without letting Zeus know what's going on." Aphrodite finished and smiled sweetly at everyone in the room before shrugging and walking out of the door, flashing away as soon as the door closed.
Athena leant down and picked up Percy from Artemis' arms and had to push back a coo of her own when his thin arms wrapped around her neck lovingly. He was warmer than Athena remembered human companionship being, and it was like a melting feeling going through her chest as a clump slowly rose into her throat. She blinked it back and frowned, deciding to investigate those feelings later. Finally, she looked around and smiled at her new family and smiled, saying something that she hadn't said in a long time. "I love you." And she vanished, leaving a shocked Hera and Hestia and a smiling Artemis alone in Cabin 2.
Athena had never had children in her palace and as such, knew very little about how to deal with them safely, much less how to entertain them. So when the goddess of wisdom arrived at her not-so-humble abode, she realized that she had no idea what she was going to do with Percy. She didn't have a second room, and he was already asleep, so she couldn't very well expect him to wake up again so she could clear her hands and her thoughts, could she? Would she be forced to sleep on the chair in her bedroom, if so, would it be poor etiquette to leave and sleep on the couch? Or better yet, could she get some work done during the night while Percy was asleep? Fortunately, these questions were answered as soon as Athena walked into her palace.
Aphrodite was in Athena's palace, which scared the sense out of Athena. But the strangest thing was, she looked ready for bed, her hair down and her face devoid of any makeup, a state that only Athena and Apollo have ever seen her in before. Aphrodite squealed as loudly as the sleeping seven year old would allow and lead Athena into her own bedroom and proceeded to make the bed, a habit that Athena rarely partook in.
"No! Stop! Make it go away! I hate you!" Percy began to mutter in his sleep, and Athena and Aphrodite locked eyes. "Stop! No!" Aphrodite and Athena began to have a mental conversation that lead to the conclusion that Percy should be woken up. Athena lightly shook his shoulder and he clenched tighter around her neck.
"Percy, need to wake up." Athena began quietly, trying to be gentle. "Percy, please, I need you to wake up. Do it for me, please!" She finished her voice breaking as she began to yell. Aphrodite stepped up beside her and looked down at Percy, stroking his hair.
"Carry on my wayward son,
There'll be peace when you are done.
Lay your weary head to rest,
Don't you cry no more." Aphrodite sang quietly, causing Percy to calm down in Athena's arms and slowly drift to sleep, but as soon as Athena put Percy down, he began to squirm and cry out in his sleep again.
"Athena, if you want him to sleep, you're going to have to lay down with him. He's obviously only comfortable with you." Aphrodite said, leaning over the bed to grab Athena's hand and pull her onto the bed on the other side of Percy. Once Athena was in the bed, barely managing to not fall on top of Percy; Aphrodite hopped in as well, landing on the other side of Percy.
"What are you doing Aphrodite?!" Athena stage whispered. "Tonight is supposed to be my chance to bond with him, he's my nephew too." Percy hugged himself close to Athena and began to murmur into her chest. Aphrodite slid into the bed on Percy's other side and smiled at Athena, wrapping her arm around Percy's waist as Percy wrapped his arms around Athena's stomach. Athena smiled slightly at Aphrodite and wrapped Percy tighter in her quilt and smiled.
"I love you." Percy muttered into Athena's chest, causing a lump to rise in her throat, as tears welled up in her eyes and she began to blush. "Don't worry about anything Athena, it'll all be alright."
"Good night, little one." Athena said.
Meanwhile, in a small boreal forest north of Oklahoma, a clan of silver clad girls gathered around a bonfire and waited for a sign that there was a god coming. They finally received that sign when a young girl, no older than twelve stepped out of the fire, her deep red hair billowing down her shoulders. As she stepped out of the flames, the girls that surrounded her seemed to bow as one and part before her.
"Lady Artemis, I have awaited your arrival, how went the council?" The lead girl asked, standing before her mistress. Consternation and thought flitted across Artemis' face for a moment before she finally responded.
"The council was uninteresting; however, an encounter with my uncle afterward was much more exciting." Artemis said, a smile creeping onto her face at the thought of her new little brother. "My little brother is going to be living with us for a while, and not Apollo, I have a new and much more…genial, younger brother, his name is Perseus."
"A boy?!" Phoebe cried out, she was one of the firmest androphobes of the group. "There's no way that a boy could possibly become part of the hunt, much less keep up with us." She argued, her yelling surprising a few of her sisters.
"I will personally keep tabs on Perseus, and I will make sure that he learns to keep up, and perhaps one day he will even ascend to become a skilled hunter of his own talent." Artemis insisted, looking pleased with herself. "Now, I expect some level of tolerance for this boy, he has had a rather difficult childhood, and as such, is very much like the rest of you.
"Your wish, milady." Zoe complied calmly, level-headed and calm as always. Atalanta smirked at the prospect of having a new target for her pranks and practical jokes. "For now, however, we must be to bed. Tomorrow is going to be a long day."
"Wait! There is one more announcement." Artemis divulged, garnering her surrogate daughters' attention. "We are going to be having another hunter joining us. Her name is Silena Beauregard and she is a daughter of Aphrodite. She has agreed to take the pledge, and she will be held to it, just as you have been held to your pledges. I accepted her because I believe she could be useful, her charmspeak is powerful. This is not a pity recruit. This is a very useful warrior that we would be gaining." Artemis insisted before waving her hand dismissively. All of her hunters quickly dissipated and sifted to their different tents.
The night was quiet and the moon was full, shining brightly on both the forest and the temple of Athena. Athena slept soundly with Percy between her and Aphrodite, but her dreams made her writhe in guilt. Percy was being tortured. The knives that gouged through his skin made Athena's toes curl in sympathy. His step-father was using a straight razor to slice deep canyons in the flesh of his chest. All of this was not the worst part, however, the face of the torturer was the worst part. The torturer's face changed from the face of Percy's stepfather, to the face of Zeus, to the face of Hermes' son, Luke, to Ares, to Hades, and from Hades, Kronos. Finally, the face stopped at a sleeping woman's face that caused Athena's blood to run cold.
"No, stop!" Percy cried, writhing in agony, struggling against the belts that held him to the bed frame. Athena rushed forward and tried to grab Percy out of the bonds, but she simply moved right through him. The blood began to ooze down his chest and onto his legs as he passed out, her dream ending.
Aphrodite also had a dream, but it involved more love, less war, not to say that there was no war. Percy was surrounded by very angry looking girls, who all seemed to want a piece of Percy. A few of the girls Aphrodite recognized, but three of them were new faces, and they looked like sisters. Aphrodite swelled with pride, and then she caught their conversation.
"So, which of us do you choose Perseus?" Zoe, one of those that Aphrodite recognized, asked. "You cannot have your cake and eat it too, you must choose a single one of us." She insisted, prodding Percy's chest.
"Percy, I know what I'm about to say may seem arrogant, but if I am under consideration, please, don't worry, I will give up my spot for one of these other girls." Calypso, another of the two that Aphrodite knew insisted. Suddenly, the hipster red-head disappeared from the circle with a simple wave and Percy was now surrounded by four girls.
"I don't want to pick one of you! I couldn't stand it if I had to leave any of you, much less three of you!" Percy almost yelled, holding his hand out to try and stroke Calypso's cheek, as a lone tear streaked down her cheek.
As soon as he said that, they all disappeared, and he was alone. A gaggle of goddesses suddenly surrounded him. Khione, Bellona, Hecate, Persephone and the Muses were surrounding him, trying to comfort him, while the girls who had previously been there were all clamoring for his attention.
Aphrodite smiled as the dream faded to black.
Percy's dreams were strange, and they all seemed to revolve around ducks.
The next morning, Percy was meant to be treated to breakfast in bed by his new aunts, unfortunately, the disuse of Athena's kitchen was due less to the fact that she was constantly busy, and more to the fact that she couldn't cook toast. And Aphrodite had never seen fit to gain the skills necessary to stay for breakfast either, so their plans were ixnayed, and replaced by Percy, once again, blowing Athena and Aphrodite away.
"What's that smell?" Percy mumbled as he drowsily walked into the kitchen in Athena's palace. He was quite a sight to behold in a sweater that covered his knees and draped over his hands. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes with his hands as he waddled in and almost drew yet another coo from the two goddesses, one of which (Aphrodite) marched over in her silk robe and cotton baby-doll pajamas, the other was standing in front of the oven, trying to logically explain the spontaneous combustion of the last three pancakes that she had put on the griddle. Silently understanding Athena's embarrassment at not being able to cook, Percy whispered something in Aphrodite's ear.
Aphrodite beamed at Percy before carrying him over toward the oven and grabbing a chair for him to stand on. Percy quickly examined everything that was on the counter and the oven and went to work. His hands moved with a mind of their own as he turned the dials on the griddle to the proper setting and grabbed the spatula that was sitting on the counter beside Athena. He quickly flipped the pancakes with grace and dexterity and placed two of them on a plate. He then deftly poured three more pancakes while maneuvering around Athena's gaping form, placing five slices of bacon on the griddle and taking a deep whiff of them as they began to sizzle. Aphrodite smiled at him from behind, but he was too absorbed in what he was doing to notice. Soon, there was a buffet of food and the smell of fresh bacon and pancakes filled the air.
"Where-…" Was all Athena could get out as Percy gently guided her by the hand back to the dining room where Aphrodite already was.
"Smelly Gabe didn't feed me, so I fed myself." Percy said with a smile, holding hands with his aunt.
When the three had gathered in the dining room, conversation simmered to a stop as the three began to focus on eating. Unfortunately, a very drunk, very belligerent Ares chose this time to make a grand entrance.
"Fuck! Where the hell have you been, you bitch?! You stood me up!" He hollered, swaying side to side as he headed for Aphrodite, his hands already sneaking toward his zipper as he prepared to do the unthinkable with two people standing in the same room. Aphrodite, who still had Percy in her lap, jumped up and out of her chair, wrapping her arms around Percy as he began to shake in rage at Ares' overconfidence, and how he dared to speak to his Aunt.
"Ares, leave, now, you are not welcome here!" Athena commanded, her fists tightening as she stood and summoned her spear to her side. Ares turned to face her, but as he placed his hand on the table to steady himself, his eyes suddenly widened.
"Don't touch them!" Percy growled, all on eyes on him, or more specifically, his right hand, where a butter knife was imbedded deeply in the war god's wrist, guaranteeing that his hand wouldn't be going anywhere unless he had the balls to try and remove it. "She said leave." He said quietly, raising his chin in defiance as he stared down the war god who teleported away, not understanding why he suddenly felt as if he couldn't do anything against the boy.
"Perseus…you shouldn't have done that." Athena warned; her eyes hard as she looked at where Ares had just been. "While Ares is an…unspeakable hideous being, and he deserves to be humiliated, he's also a close associate of Zeus, and he should not be offended unnecessarily." She finished, her tone becoming more cautious.
"But-…he-…" Percy began, not knowing why Athena looked so upset. He looked down, uncertain and sad, but still firmly believing that he was right.
"Oh, Percy! Don't worry, you did well!" Aphrodite insisted, sending a pointed look at Athena who frowned, not knowing anything about children. "You're my hero Percy, and I don't know how I could ever repay you, my knight in shining armor…" Aphrodite said, trailing off as she realized something.
"On second thought, I do believe you could use some new armor, so to speak." Aphrodite finished, smiling thoughtfully. "That's what you and I could do this weekend!" Aphrodite exclaimed, her mind working a mile a minute. Athena frowned, but she refused to allow this to spoil her day with her nephew.
"Yes, you do need some new clothing, but for now, we'll simply stay in my palace and not worry about that." Athena said, leaning in front of Percy. Percy gradually let a smile onto his face and held his arms open for a hug. Athena wrapped her arms around Percy and kissed his temple, She then pulled him back and smiled. "I'm sorry for what I said. You didn't know better, and you thought you were helping." She finished, standing up and taking his hand. Aphrodite smiled and followed close behind, watching carefully at the confidence that began to seep into Athena since Percy appeared. "How do you feel about football-err…soccer?" Athena asked, wondering what she should do with Percy.
"I've never really gotten a chance to play any sports." Percy said, looking up at Athena in curiosity. "But I'll go anywhere with you two." Percy said, looking happy with himself. As he marched fearlessly into a new future.