Merri groaned as she felt the lift stop moving indicating that they had finally arrived to Olympus. The doors opened up allowing for the spectacular view of the realm of Gods. She could see different palaces scattered in a seemingly random pattern amongst clouds, a pillar or two here and there. The clouds were a dark grey mixed with black from the combination of Zeus' rage and the face that it was night-time.
Trying to keep her severely burned arms from touching her body or each other, Merri followed the two younger demi-gods out of the lift and onto the road that led to the grand palace she only guessed was Zeus' and where the council was currently at.
"Percy, I can't get through. You gotta go!" Sally said holding her hand splayed on the barrier keeping her from setting foot into the realm of immortals. With one look back, Percy set for the grand palace, Annabeth and Merri following close by.
The noise of the arguing gods could be well heard outside of the palace walls as the three demi-gods climbed the stairs that led to it. Merri was heavily panting as they ran up. The lack of sleep, the fatigue from her turning into her water form and traveling all the way to New York, the fight with Luke and the wounds she sustained were quickly sapping away any energy she had left. It took everything she had for her not to succumb into the blackness that was manifesting as dark spots in her vision. A roar heard from the inside managed to wake her up a bit and she heard silence fill the council room.
"WAIT!" Percy yelled waving the Bolt above his head as the trio came running into the council room. "Wait!" The trio came to screeching halt and Merri almost tumbled over her own two feet as her chucks skidded her foot or two on the marble floor.
She raised her eyes to see a humongous room made of marble, lit with torches that gave the stone a warm golden orange hue. Columns decorated every wall; in the centre of the room was a mechanical device with a sky map Merri guessed was some sort of a clock for the gods and eleven marble thrones were lined in a semi-circle separated into two halves by a much larger throne that overlooked the entire room. Eight of the thrones were occupied by the gods, the two closest to the large throne and the large throne itself were empty of their occupants who stood in front of the 'clock' arguing before they were interrupted by the trio's arrival. A throne farthest away from the grand one was also empty and there seemed to be no sign of its occupant. Merri guessed it was Hades' seat.
The three gods in the middle, two gods and a goddess, were, who Merri presumed, Zeus, Poseidon and Athena-their parents and uncle/grandfather. She guessed the one in the armour that looked suspiciously like fish scales was Poseidon- her and Percy's father- while the one with the white cape was Zeus. Her eyesight was getting seriously blurry, something she attributed to blood loss she was experiencing via the large nasty gash on her thigh and numerous cuts on her face and the unburned expanse of her arms, and she couldn't really differentiate the people standing in front of her based on looks. All she now had to guide her were their voices.
"My name is Percy Jackson," Percy introduced himself. Merri briefly wondered if he were still holding his sword out like he was expecting an attack when she felt an arm encircle her torso in an attempt of holding her upright and it was the feel of long hair on her cheek that told her it was Annabeth helping her. She would have to remember to thank her later, when she was more rested. "Think you might be looking for this."
Percy ran forward and Merri felt Annabeth wrap her hand around her upper arm, as not to touch her burns, and hastily guide her after her brother.
"Give me the Bolt, Lightning Thief," a deep voice said from a height in front of them. Through her blurry vision, Merri saw a humongous figure clad in golden armour and a white cape leaning over them with an outstretched hand. Zeus. Percy threw the Bolt to his uncle and, crackling through the air, it landed safely in Zeus' hand where it grew back to its regular size of being a giant. No wonder getting sizzled by it hurt so damn much!
Lightning streaked the outside dark sky. "You're wise to betray your father," Zeus told Percy. If there were a bit more strength in Merri's system, she would've lunged at Zeus, him being a god be damned, but with the exhausted state she was currently in, she settled for sending her uncle a murderous glare- or, what she presumed was his general direction, at least.
"I didn't steal it," Percy exclaimed. "And I've no connection to Poseidon. Neither does my sister," he added after a second. Suddenly Merri felt eleven gazes prickling on her bruised, burned and cut skin and she managed a small sheepish wave to the occupants of the room before letting her arm fall with a noticeable wince and a small groan of pain as she felt the skin on her arm being pulled from the motion.
"Then tell me," Zeus said returning his gaze to Percy. "If you didn't steal it, then who did?"
Merri noticed a small hesitation to Percy's answer and she gave him a small nod, encouraging him. "Luke... Son of Hermes." There was a short silence and rustling of clothes and Merri felt Annabeth placing a comforting hand on her unhurt left shoulder and giving it a small squeeze. "You see," Percy proceeded to explain. "He was angry at you. All of you. He wanted you to destroy yourselves." A longer pause ensued in which Merri felt like she would go mad. In situations like these, she couldn't stand the silence while she normally preferred it.
"You've done well," Zeus finally broke the silence. When he next spoke, his voice seemed farther away and Merri assumed he'd gone back to his throne. "Let there be peace." A sigh of relief tore itself from Merri's lips and she let a small smile grace her features before it fell. Her face still hurt like hell and her heart was faring no better from the betrayal she had experienced from the side of the person she trusted the most in this world. She felt Percy and Annabeth switch holding her upright and Merri let her head fall onto her brother's shoulder for support.
"Hi, mom," she heard Annabeth say to Athena. There was a hint of tears in her voice.
"Annabeth," the female voice answered. "I am so proud of you." It was a heart-warming moment, truly. Annabeth was speaking to her mother for the first time and it made Merri wish for Poseidon to say something instead of just stand where he was in silence. Hell, she wished she could look at him properly, for goodness sake, to see if her eye colour was the only thing she'd inherited from him.
"Zeus?! I've a good friend," Percy started. "He's a Satyr... named Grover. He's my protector, and the only reason Annabeth and I escaped the Underworld is because he stayed behind."
"And, now, you expect me to bring him back, "Zeus said, a hint of humour in his voice. It was that hint that urged Merri to speak up for the first time since they came here.
"If it's not too inconvenient. He may eat all my candy and soda cans but the goofy goat's kind of grown on me a little, too." She even managed a goofy smile of her own in Zeus' direction.
"Very well," was Zeus' answer. Percy breathed a sigh of relief. "I believe this assembly's business here is finished," Zeus said getting up. He made a move to leave but was stopped by Poseidon who seemed to have come back alive from his stoned demeanour from a moment ago.
"Brother, please. I need to speak with them," he pleaded.
"Just this once." With that, Zeus and the rest of the council left the room.
"I'll meet you two outside," Annabeth said and left as well.
Poseidon's large figure came kneeling in front of his two children. One was standing proud and defiant, with his arm wrapped around his older sister who was leaning heavily on him, her breathing slightly laboured and her still blue eyes looking at her father unfocused.
"I'm not expecting you to forgive me," Poseidon started and Merri recognized the voice as the one that warned her about the lotus flowers in Vegas. "But I want you to know that I am grateful."
She felt Percy's arm tighten a bit around her and she tried to suppress a wince and small groan of pain causing Percy to immediately loosen his grip a little. "I didn't do it for you," he said. "I did it for mom. Come on, Merri." He started leading her back in the direction of the door they came in through.
They had barely taken three steps with Merri's injured state, when they were stopped by their father. He'd turned himself into water and rematerialized in front of them in human size. "Please," he begged Percy. "We don't have much time. At least let me heal her." Percy was reluctant for a moment but he must've nodded because Merri suddenly felt two comforting cool hands take hold of her face and her hand. A cool sensation flooded her sense and she closed her eyes as she felt her wounds slowly heal. A feeling of pinching came over her as the gash on her thigh worked on mending itself together. It only lasted about half a minute before the feeling of the hands was list from her skin. Merri opened her sea-green eyes, her energy mostly restored, to look upon her father.
The man standing in front of her looked like an older version of Percy clad in dark green armour with dark ginger hair and a beard. There was a small tattoo of a trident done in dark sea-green ink on the side of his shoulder. Merri had to admit that she had one seriously handsome dad and finally found it believable how her mum had fallen for this guy. There was, also, finally an explanation behind the ginger colour of her own hair.
"How old was I when you left?" Percy asked. There was an angry look on his face, buried deep beneath actual curiosity. To be honest, Merri was curious too.
Poseidon didn't seem to be able to look his children in the eye and, so, opted for looking at his sandal clad feet. "Seven months," he answered before sneaking a glance at Merri and continuing. "You were seven months old. Merriall was six months old when I last saw her."
The siblings exchanged glances and there seemed to be an unspoken agreement that Percy would be the one doing the talking. With Merri, there was no knowing what could fly out of her uncontrollable trap. "Look, we didn't need you there all the time but... I would- We would've liked to have seen you just once," he corrected himself after realizing that Merri had been deprived of her real father even longer that he was and she was grateful for his words. It told her that he accepted the fact that they had the same father and it mean a lot to her.
"Why didn't you ever come back?" Merri spoke up for the second time.
"I wanted to," Poseidon admitted. Then, he proceeded to give Merri and apologetic look turning to Percy and she realized that the following reason would have nothing to do with her. "When I was with you and your mother, I became less concerned with my responsibilities." He gave a sad smile. "I was becoming human."
As Poseidon spoke, Merri hung her head. It stung that it was only her brother and his mother who were the reason her father wanted to come back to Earth. To her it seemed like Percy would always be his favourite and it hurt to know that he was only second-rate. She stuffed her healed hands into the pockets of her jeans to keep them from trembling to keep them from shaking and blinked back tears that were threatening to spill from her eyes and down her newly healed face.
"And that's a bad thing?" Percy asked.
Poseidon scoffed. "For a god? Zeus thinks so. That's why he passed the law that forbid the gods from ever contacting with their children." Of course, this was something Meri knew from having eavesdropped on Chiron and Mr. D but it was still new information to Percy.
"That was because of you?" Poseidon nodded with a guilty look.
"But I was always watching over you," he said. Poseidon looked at Merri and added: "Both of you. Just because you didn't see me doesn't mean I wasn't there. When you were in trouble, I tried to help."
"I heard you," Percy said with a small nod.
Merri raised her gaze with a sad smile. "Me too," she admitted. "In the hotel in Vegas. And before, with the Fury."
Poseidon sighed and took a few steps closer to the siblings. "I know I wasn't the father you've always wanted but if you ever need me, I'll be there for you. In your thoughts and dreams." Merri returned the smile he sent them with a small nod and a smile of her own. "I'll stand by you two, always." He offered Percy his hand, which Percy still reluctantly accepted, and gave him a firm handshake.
Without another word, Percy turned on his heel and left Merri with Poseidon but not before giving her a fleeting look that said he would be waiting for her outside to say her goodbyes. Merri gave him a nod and turned back to her father.
"I want you to know that I'm really sorry for leaving you and your mother," Poseidon started with a remorseful look. "It was never my intention to hurt either of you."
Merri stopped him with a raise of her hand. She gave him an understanding look. "You fell in love with someone else, I understand that. It's... not something any of us have control over, so... I can't really blame you for it."
"I would've been there for you too if I were able to."
She nodded. "I know. And I'm thankful for it. It really means a lot, you know."
They stood there in silence for a moment, neither saying a word, before Poseidon spoke with a fond smile. "You look a lot like your mother.
"Thanks," she said with a real smile.
"How is Jane? You two still live in Australia?" Poseidon asked her with a look of true curiosity. He may not have loved her mum like he did Percy's, but he still cared about her.
"Mum's great. She got married to an American when I was four so we moved. We live in Seattle now. She's happy and she's had two more kids, so I have another brother and a sister."
Poseidon looked back at his feet and said in a small voice: "Good. That's good."
Merri smiled and tried to catch his eye. "Mum said that if I ever came across you again I tell you that you're welcome to visit us anytime you want. She says you're welcome to come whenever you want." She crossed the small distance between them and wrapped her arms around his neck in a hug, surprising him completely. For a moment he didn't seem to know what to do but he must've come around because, not long after, she felt him wrap his arms around her smaller form. "It would really mean a lot if you could come to my Christmas recital. I know Mum would be glad to see you too," she softly said as she let go of him and took a small step back. "I'll understand if you don't but I'd be really glad to see you there."
Without looking in her father's face for an answer, Merri stuffed her hands back in her pockets and walked towards the exit. Just before she was at the door, she heard Poseidon call after her: "What kind of recital?"
Smiling, she looked over her shoulder. "Figure-skating, of course." Then she left the room and went to find Percy and Annabeth.
...
It's been seven months since the Summer Solstice, since Percy returned the Bolt to Zeus, since Merri finally spoke to her father for the first time, since... since she learned about her best friend's betrayal. It still hurt, deeply so. It stung worse than any burn, pained her more than any cut, gash or broken bone. It just... hurt. A lot.
She was sitting at a table of some random Boston café sipping at the cup of black coffee. Her hand unconsciously rubbed her thigh where the gash used to be before Poseidon healed it. Still, a nasty scar that was about two inches wide and went down the length of her thigh remained. It itched from time to time, though.
She was sporting a white button down shirt she tucked into her dark skinny jeans and black boots with her ever-present Celestial Bronze bracelet. Her hair fell down her back in streaked ginger waves, some strands spreading over her shoulders as she slouched over an 800 page text book on human anatomy. There was an exam she had in two days and she was cramming for it as much as she could. She needed to own this exam if she were to get the other, richer and snobbier, students to get off her case.
"Think I'm starting to have regrets for not going to Julliard," she sighed to herself while rubbing at her eyes with one hand and taking a sip of her coffee with the other. Normally, she would be in her apartment, barricaded from the rest of the world but after being in there for two days straight, she had to get herself some fresh air, hence, her studying at the coffee place.
The moment she and Percy came back to the Camp day after the Solstice- Percy's mum gave them a lift- a bright sea-green trident started glowing above her head. At first, she had no idea what was going on and why everyone was staring at her. But then, Chiron started talking and it dawned on her. She was claimed! She was just claimed by Poseidon! It was hard to say who was more shocked: she, Chiron or the other campers. But, they got over it in the course of a few days. Of course, Merri being antisocial and avoiding whatever form of human contact from the other campers helped in getting the others to back off faster.
All she had to do was get through the summer that turned out to be quite uneventful. Well, save for Grover getting his horns, Percy breaking his leg which Merri healed within an hour of it happening. During the summer, Merri managed to work on her German and even wrote a song in the language and wrote the music that accompanied it using her guitar. She survived another Rafter Family Gathering and the cca. 150 members of the Rafter clan, reconnected with her cousin Andrew who lived in Belfast and yet spoke with stronger Aussie accent than she did- and he was born there!
Sneaking a glance at the clock, Merri slammed her book, shoved it into her bag, downed her coffee and ran out in the direction of the campus like she was being chased by Hellhounds. If she didn't hurry up, she would be late for class.
AN: Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand... This is officially the last chapter of this fic. I finished typing this thing up before I even started writing the previous chapter and it's quarter to midnight as I'm typing this note down.
I would like to thank all of you for sticking with this story for so long, for reading, faving, following and reviewing. It all really means a lot to me. More so, since this is the first story I had the guts to publish and am honestly surprised it was so well received. I thought I'd get flamed for butchering the original material and was afraid I'd make everyone extremely OOC.
To be honest, the hardest part to write was the previous chapter, especially the scene of Luke's betrayal and I'm still really miffed with the way it turned out.
Anyways, thank you for your support and patience! I hope you found this chapter to your liking and, please, stay tuned in for the sequel.
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