AN: I. DRANK. MY. COFFEE. Happy 2014 Everyone!
AN 2: The Reading Fic has been revived! Two authors have taken the challenge, but the first to post was none other than the talented author of The Tides Change Once More, my new buddy, Engineer4Ever!
Here's to you, Engineer!
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Percy Jackson and the Olympians.
Sun's Heir, Death's Guardian II: A Hero's Peril
V
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: 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, 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. 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. 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. 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. He was pretty sure that Thalia wouldn't love him anymore if he did that.
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."
"Oh am I really?" Naruto asked teasingly before raising his keys up to dangle in front of her, "Which of us is licensed again?"
"Which of us could care less?" Thalia retorted, 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."
"Don't call me babe," Thalia grumbled with distaste as she swatted his hand away. 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. 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. It was the small annoyances he could provide that made him feel alive.
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. 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."
"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?"
"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."
"Do you know Lyre?" Tristan asked curiously, "A relative?"
Thalia, who was smirking at the whole exchange, gave her boyfriend a grin that made him want to cry. It was her mischievous grin, one that she had gotten during their few months as a couple. 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.
"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. 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 one of the things his father had taught him, he'd be doomed to a life of pestering from perverts.
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. 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.
"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."
"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, "He and my mom are...separated in a way. 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.
"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. 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.
"I know that!" the girl exclaimed with a blush while her father laughed along with Thalia. Huffing, the embarrassed thirteen year old rephrased your 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. 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."
"Let's 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. Finally, after a walk through the ridiculously long hallway, and passing several paintings, statues and murals of a certain deity, 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. 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.
"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 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."
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.
"Phoebus," Naruto greeted as his eyes narrowed slightly. 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. 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.
"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."
"...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."
"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?"
"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!"
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, "There's the perks that come with being with her; the sex, the free loving, the occasional affair to liven up the bedroom. And then there's the whole immortality thing that comes along with it."
"...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!"
"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?"
"Rey-chan is way too young for me!" Naruto argued before adding, "Physically anyway."
"Says the twenty-two-year-old dating a sixteen-year-old," countered the God with a smirk. At Naruto's growl he continued, "Well if you're going to be so picky why not go after Cyrene?"
"...Cyrene is like my great-great-great-great-grandniece!" exclaimed the blond before being shushed by Apollo, 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.
"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."
"...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."
"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."
"Now you sound like Vesta," Apollo snorted out before continuing tiredly, "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!"
"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, "Not to mention that you're suggesting the girl I like, maybe even love, is someone I shouldn't be with!"
"She's beneath you!" Apollo argued.
"She's Jupiter's daughter!" protested the teen.
"She is Greek!" Apollo hissed as his eyes narrowed, "A Greek. You would rather have a Greek than a Roman or a Goddess!"
"You're talking to your Greek son!" Naruto pointed out through gritted teeth.
"You are the reincarnation of a God!" the Roman Apollo said before clasping his hands onto the teen's shoulders. 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."
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?"
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.
"How's about this, we agree to disagree," suggested the blond demigod as he tried reign in his temper.
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."
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, "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."
"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."
"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."
"Like you don't have someone to give you the hanky panky on the side here," scoffed Naruto.
"Don't compare me with my other self!" Apollo said with a frown. His grin reappeared as he quickly added, "You'll only feel worse about you."
"There you go again with that humble trait we all share," snarked Naruto before he sighed, "Look, I didn't come here to argue over which side of you is the best, you're both equally annoying, 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."
"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."
"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.
"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."
"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."
"You have got to be fucking kidding me!" exclaimed the blond in disbelief. 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. In fact all that was within the icy ocean blues was the mirth Apollo found in the situation his son was in.
Naruto stormed out of the building's elevator with a slightly shocked Thalia following behind him. He was livid, he was embarrassed and he was this close to flipping his shit!
Maybe that's why his portrayal of Jack Nicholson's monologue from A Few Good Men was so good it got a standing ovation. 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!
...That...was...amazing, commented a familiar voice within his head.
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.
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.
"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.
Rolling his own eyes, Naruto gestured to the slightly offended 'nothing' and explained his actions, "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."
"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."
See? The spirit animal can confirm your sanity, Helios joked, getting Naruto to glare at him.
"You're not funny," grumbled the blond, 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.
"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."
Tapping the raven-haired girl on the nose, Naruto replied with a grin of his own, "Yeah, but that's what makes me irresistible."
"Part of your charm?" Thalia joked with a smirk.
"Damn straight," Naruto said with a smirk of his own.
"Ugh, both of you go get a room," Kyu mocked, "But be safe~!"
"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. 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!?"
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.
"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.
"M-Mister Lyre wanted to talk to my dad alone about a new movie idea, something about ninjas," Piper stuttered out 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. It can't come here because of my dad. And it most likely wants to eat either me or my tasty girlfriend!"
He sent a glare to the girl that elbowed him in the side before looking behind him at the demigoddess shaking like a leaf. 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..."
"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."
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!"
"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.
"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!"
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!"
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. After doing so he looked down at the girl in amusement when she mumbled, "Think she's gonna forget what we said?"
"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.
For at that moment 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, 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.
AN: More on the Labyrinth next time! Will Tyson still manage to join the group? How will Piper take to learning about her mother? Does Tristan allow her to go with the two older teens? Will Phoebus Apollo appear again? Will the TARDIS save the day–oh wait, wrong series. Will anyone else notice that I might have been watching DoctorWho while writing this?
To find out there's only one thing left to do,
REVIEW!