A/N: Hey everyone! Here's the new chapter, and thanks for reading it!
Thank you feuerrot10, Jedi1, bobywhy, PrincessOfAtlantis101, and aquachick521 for your reviews! I appreciate your kind words, and I've listened to your opinions (so I won't write Thaluke, but I will include Thalia-she's actually mentioned in this chapter, but we won't meet her until later). Also, I've fixed the error that I made in Chapter 5 regarding the order of the knights' processional. Thanks for pointing that out.
Anyways, there's just one term you need to know before you read this chapter. That term is "garderobe," which was the toilet room in a medieval castle. It was typically separated from the resident's chambers by a long passage and door because it smelled so bad. It was commonly used for storage, as well, because the stench discouraged pests (e.g. moths) from sticking around around destroying the lord's belongings (e.g. clothes).
I'll leave you with that pleasant thought. Enjoy!
When Percy woke on the morning after his wedding, he had no idea what a hectic day awaited him. In fact, his morning began as usual—he woke at sunrise, offered prayers in the oratory, spent some time in his apartment, and ate his first meal at ten o'clock.
The excitement began after breakfast, when Percy and Annabeth's wedding guests left Merchester to return home. Percy stood behind Annabeth and watched her bid an awkward farewell to her family by the inner gate. She stood five feet away from the Chases and gave them each curtseys instead of hugs. The duchess curtseyed back, while the duke and his sons bowed. Then the family climbed into their carriage and left without a word. Annabeth blinked rapidly when the carriage left her sight—as if she was trying to hold back tears—but Percy saw her smile at the same time.
The prince shook his head. He would never understand women. How could they feel such opposite emotions as happiness and sadness at once?
He could've pondered that thought all day without finding an answer, but a deep voice pulled the prince out of his reverie.
"Prince Perseus!"
Percy fought back a groan as he turned to face the man who'd spoken. He acknowledged the noble with a stiff smile, "Duke."
Zeus—the Duke of Olympus—smirked back at him. "Please, accept my congratulations on your marriage. Lady Annabeth—forgive me, Princess Annabeth —is an excellent match."
"Yes," Percy agreed. He saw Annabeth turn to look at him from the corner of his eye, "I can't think of another lady as suited to the position. We shall be very happy together."
Annabeth turned away, but she had a smile on her face, and that was enough to make Percy smile too.
"Of course," the duke agreed. "I wish you both the best." He paused, and dropped his voice to a whisper, "Please accept my condolences, as well."
"Condolences?" Percy spoke the word aloud, but he lowered his voice when several people glanced his way, "What for?"
"You don't know?" The duke widened his eyes in mock surprise, but Percy noticed a smug smile tugging at the edges of his mouth. Zeus was goading him, "I thought your father might've told you, but I guess I was mistaken."
Red-hot anger coursed through Percy's veins. He hated when the king kept information from him, but told the nobles. It made him look like a fool, and Zeus brought it up at every opportunity. The duke never said anything openly disrespectful, but he constantly hinted that Poseidon didn't think Percy was capable of managing state affairs.
"I suppose," Zeus continued, "that I can understand the king's reticence to share this information with just anyone." Percy clenched his fists—he was not just anyone, he was the crown prince of Atlantis!—but Zeus wasn't done speaking, "A wise monarch is wary of whom he can trust."
A new voice entered the conversation before Percy could respond.
"I'll try not to take that as an insult, Duke." Kronos moved to stand between Percy and Zeus, "Because I met with King Poseidon this morning, and he didn't share any sensitive information with me." The Duke of Titania gave a condescending sneer, "Is it possible that you've overestimated the importance of your information? After all, both Prince Perseus and I rank higher than you do—don't you think that the king would confide in us before he turned to you? We have so much more power to help him deal with difficult issues."
The Duke of Olympus went red. His voice shook with barely controlled rage as he addressed Kronos, "Need I remind you that we are both dukes?"
"Yes," Kronos drawled, "but my duchy is twice as large and three times as rich as yours. Let's not pretend that our ranks are equivalent."
Percy coughed to cover a snicker. He'd never liked Kronos much, but maybe the Duke of Titania wasn't so bad after all. He certainly had his redeeming qualities.
Zeus didn't look like he agreed. He glowered at Kronos, "For all your power, this fact remains: the king did not trust you with the information that I gave him."
Kronos's sneer widened, "You spoke as though King Poseidon entrusted you, specifically, with sensitive information. I didn't realize that you were the one who shared the information with him."
The Duke of Olympus frowned, "I never said that King Poseidon shared the information with me."
"You implied it."
"No, I didn't. You misunderstood me."
"I misunderstood nothing," Kronos countered, "but we all know that, so let's not argue."
Zeus grunted to show his frustration, but he did not push the issue. He turned towards Percy, executed a shallow bow, and then marched swiftly off. He was barely out of earshot when Kronos spoke again.
The duke kept his voice at a whisper, so that only Percy could hear him, "I hope you don't mind me saying this, your highness, but I don't like the Duke of Olympus—I never have."
Percy nodded noncommittally and glanced around the bailey. He was going to let the matter drop, but then Kronos said something that caught his attention.
"I don't trust him."
The prince's gaze snapped back to Kronos, "Why is that?"
The duke sighed. His trademark sneer disappeared, and was replaced by a distressed-looking frown, "The Duke of Olympus likes to overstate his importance, and he frequently disrespects his superiors. Those habits concern me, because they suggest that he's dissatisfied with his current position at court; they hint at hidden political ambition."
Percy's blood ran cold at Kronos's implication. He glanced around the bailey to make sure that no one was listening, then shuffled closer to the duke and spoke in a soft voice, "That's a serious accusation. Has the Duke of Olympus said anything?"
"No," Kronos answered, "if he had, I would've told you straight away. I don't believe that he's an immediate threat—I just wanted to warn you about his behaviour, so that you could watch him more closely in the future."
The prince nodded, "Thank you, Duke. I appreciate your advice, and I'll take it to heart. But let's leave the subject now, because it's not wise to discuss these things in public."
Kronos agreed, "Of course, your highness. That's not what I came to discuss, anyways."
"Oh?" Percy raised a single brow to show that he was intrigued, "What did you want to discuss, then?"
"Two things," Kronos admitted. "First, I want to congratulate you and Princess Annabeth on your wedding. I wish you both a happy and fruitful marriage."
"Thank you. What is the second matter?"
"I spoke with your father this morning, and we agreed that my granddaughter, Lady Silena, would make an excellent lady-in-waiting for Princess Annabeth." Kronos's sneer returned, "I believe that King Poseidon asked the Duke of Olympus's daughter, Lady Thalia, to serve as a lady-in-waiting, as well. I thought you might like to know about both appointments."
"You thought correctly," Percy smiled. "Thank you for telling me."
Kronos startled the prince by grinning in response. The expression transformed his surly face into a much friendlier one, but it failed to reach his unusual gold eyes. Those eyes watched Percy closely, "I should get going. Congratulations again, Prince Perseus, and farewell."
"Farewell," Percy responded. He watched the duke leave, and then glanced towards the sky. A few white clouds blocked the sun from view, but it was still a beautiful day. In fact, it was perfect weather for tilting at the quintain. The prince decided to do just that, but he needed his armour first, so he headed towards the gatehouse in search of his squire.
He entered the gatehouse's southwest tower, and then climbed a spiral staircase to the first floor. He exited the tower at that floor and walked along the dimly lit corridor of the gatehouse until he reached his apartment. Two guards stood on either side of the door to make sure that only authorized people could get in. The guard on the left opened the door when he saw Percy approaching, but the prince did not enter his chambers immediately.
He stopped just outside the doorway and addressed the guard standing on the right, "Have you seen my squire? I wish to speak with him."
The guard nodded stiffly, "He is inside, my lord."
"Excellent," Percy responded. Then he stepped through the doorway and into his bedchamber.
The second guard returned to his post and closed the door behind him while Percy searched the room for Ethan. The squire was not there, so Percy walked to the right side of his bedchamber and opened the heavy wooden door in the center of that wall. That door led into his study, which contained a large desk that the prince rarely used, a small set of drawers, and a sofa and two chairs with blue upholstery. The seats were arranged around a blue rug and situated in front of an ornate stone fireplace.
Percy glanced around the room, but Ethan was not there, so he crossed the study and opened the door in the far wall. He stepped into a long, narrow corridor and walked to the end of the passage. A single door separated the prince from his garderobe. When he opened that door, he was greeted with the terrible stench of human waste. The scent was enough to make Percy's eyes water, but he was still able to see that Ethan was not inside the room.
The prince left the garderobe quickly, shut the door behind him to contain the smell, and then returned to his study. He planned to scold his guards for being lax in their duties—their failure to keep track of the visitors in Percy's chambers was a serious lapse in security—but he never got the chance. The moment that he stepped into the corridor where his guards were standing, a page greeted him.
The page—a young boy of about eight years old—stood with his hands hidden respectfully behind his back as he delivered a message, "King Poseidon requests your immediate presence in his chambers."
Percy forgot all about his plan to reprimand the guards as he looked at the boy. "Did the king mention why he wants to meet with me?"
"No, my lord."
"Very well, then you may tell him that I'm on my way."
The page nodded, then scampered off to relay Percy's message. The prince followed at a slightly slower pace; he returned to the southwest tower, climbed the last flight of stairs, and then walked along the corridor until he reached his father's apartment. He passed between the soldiers that were guarding the entrance and stepped into the king's bedchamber. Poseidon was not there, however, so Percy moved to check the adjacent study.
He stopped short in the doorway when he noticed Poseidon pacing the room, "Is something wrong, Father?"
The king came to a sudden stop in front of his desk, and his head whipped around to look at Percy. He seemed surprised to see the prince, even though he'd asked Percy to meet with him.
"Perseus! Come in, Son, and close the door behind you."
Percy stepped forward, and then shut the door obediently. Once that was done, he turned towards the king with his eyebrows raised, "I received your message; you wish to speak with me?"
Poseidon nodded. He opened his mouth to speak, but closed it without saying anything. Then he dipped his head towards the other side of the room. The study was laid out just like Percy's, so the area where Poseidon gestured to had a sofa and two padded chairs situated around a large rug. The furniture was green, rather than blue, and the rug was brown, but it was otherwise identical to the prince's sitting area.
"This conversation may take a while," Poseidon explained, "so let's sit before we get started."
Both men moved towards the furniture, and each selected a chair on opposite ends of the sofa. As soon as they were settled, the king began to speak. "I met with a few of the nobles earlier this morning, to hear their reports on the provinces."
Poseidon paused, so Percy prodded him with a question, "What news did they share?"
"Nothing good," the king answered. His green eyes darkened ominously as he explained, "Atlantis's situation has worsened. I'll spare you the details, but there are a few things that you should know. First, the mysterious fires that kept troubling Lord Hermes's march have become more frequent—there are new blazes every night, now—and they've also started in nearby provinces. We still don't know what is causing them. Second, the raiding parties attacking Lord Ares's march have grown larger and bolder. Initially, the raiders would attack a town, slay its inhabitants, burn its buildings, and then run. Now, they've stayed in a few places long enough for Lord Ares's forces to confront them. The casualties of those skirmishes have been equal on both sides thus far."
Percy's eyebrows rose of their own accord. Lord Ares had the best-trained forces in Atlantis. If the raiders had inflicted that many casualties on his men, then they were not the same common barbarians that frequently bothered Ares's borders.
"Third," Poseidon continued, "the plague is still ravaging Lord Apollo's earldom. We're doing what we can to contain it—quarantining infected areas, praying for deliverance, and burning fires at every street corner to cleanse the air from miasmas—but the disease is still spreading."
The king stood from his chair and began to pace the brown rug.
"Fourth," he declared, "food keeps disappearing from storehouses across the country. I ordered the nobles to post guards outside the entrances after our last meeting, but that hasn't helped. The food keeps disappearing overnight, even though the guards all swear that they never let anyone in."
Percy's brow furrowed, and he shook his head in disbelief; nothing the king was saying made sense. Food didn't just disappear into thin air, and fires didn't randomly ignite themselves. Plague and invasion were unfortunate realities of their time, but it was unnatural for Atlantis to suffer so many calamities at once.
When he voiced that thought to the king, a grim frown flitted across Poseidon's face.
"You're right," the king admitted. He returned to his seat, and then ran a hand through his short black hair. "It is unnatural for so much to go wrong at once. The people know it as well—with all the trouble we've been having, rumours of witchcraft have spread faster than we can crush them. A few hunts have broken out across the country, but after speaking with the Duke of Olympus this morning, those hunts are now the least of my worries."
Percy leaned forward in his seat. He smiled, despite the gravity of the situation, because he realized that Zeus had been wrong. The king did trust Percy enough to share the duke's sensitive information with him, "What did the duke say?"
"He told me that the Bishop of Roma has been stirring up dissent among the people."
The prince's smile fell. He gaped at his father in shock, "What?"
Poseidon frowned back at him, "It's ridiculous, of course, but Bishop Octavian is telling the people that God has chosen a new king for Atlantis."
"Who?!"
"He won't say," the king sighed wearily, "at least not yet. Apparently, God will reveal the candidate when the moment is right."
"That's preposterous!" Percy leapt to his feet, "He's a fool! He's just bitter that we didn't listen to him about my marriage, and now he's trying to get his revenge. No one will believe him!"
Poseidon lifted both his hands and gestured for the prince to calm down, so Percy begrudgingly returned to his seat.
"You're wrong to say that no one will believe him," Poseidon spoke sadly, "because many already do."
"Then they're fools as well!" Percy spat. It was rare for the prince to become angry, but he was livid at that moment.
The king ran another hand through his hair, "They believe the bishop because he presents a convincing argument. He's won many people over by claiming that Atlantis's recent troubles are proof of God's anger with me, their king. Fire, famine, war, and plague are all instruments of God's wrath, so many people who listen to his arguments are convinced by them."
"They're not persuaded by his logic," Percy stated adamantly. "They just want to believe that what he says is true, because if it is, then they can end their suffering by turning on you."
The prince shook his head in disgust, "They're cowards who let their fear turn them against their king, but I'm not afraid." Percy's voice wavered slightly, revealing that statement to be a lie, but he carried on regardless, "If a rebellion breaks out, then I will fight for you. I'm certain that others will too—maybe not everyone, but some people will be loyal to their king."
Poseidon smiled kindly at his son, "I never doubted you, Perseus. I know that you will stand with me, but I can't be certain about my nobles. If they all stood with me, we could crush a revolt, but many of them are too ambitious. They would side with the people if they thought that they could replace me as king. That's why I've made a few arrangements to ensure my most important nobles' loyalty."
That piqued the prince's interest. He cocked his head to the side, "Oh?"
Poseidon's smile widened, "I've invited the Ladies Thalia and Silena to serve as Princess Annabeth's ladies-in-waiting. Lady Thalia is the Duke of Olympus's daughter, and Lady Silena is the Duke of Titania's granddaughter. Having them in this household should give us insurance against the dukes—they could not side with the peasants in a revolt without risking the lives of their family members."
Percy nodded. Frederick would remain loyal because of Annabeth, so if the king could secure the other dukes' support, then the royal family had a strong position. In that way, the plan made sense. Unfortunately, Percy wasn't certain that it would be effective. He thought about Kronos's warning regarding Zeus's ambition, and an idea formed in his mind.
The prince looked at his father, and then said, "I've noticed some troubling behaviour from the Duke of Olympus; he constantly overstates his importance at court, and he doesn't show the proper amount of respect to his superiors. I'm concerned about the implications of those habits—they suggest that he aspires to a more powerful position at court."
The king nodded. He looked impressed with Percy's insight, so the prince didn't bother to give Kronos credit for the idea.
Percy paused, and then finished his thought, "Are you certain that the Duke of Olympus would side with us in a revolt, just because supporting the people would put his daughter in harm's way? I'm afraid that his ambition might outweigh his fatherly affection."
Poseidon frowned, "One can never be certain with these things. I admit that having Lady Thalia here might not guarantee the duke's loyalty, but, at the very least, it gives us some leverage over him. That's better than the alternative, which is to do nothing and have no leverage at all."
Percy accepted that logic with a reluctant nod. The king was right; his plan wasn't perfect, but it was better than nothing.
"Anyways," Poseidon sighed, "that is all the news I have for you, Son."
Percy smirked, "It's enough. I'm grateful that there's not any more to tell."
His comment brought a wry smile to the king's face, "I don't feel very grateful at the moment, but I suppose you're right—things could be worse."
Poseidon placed both his hands on the armrests of his chair, and then pushed himself into a standing position. He smiled down at his son, "Anyways, we shouldn't dwell on such dark matters. You are a married man now, Perseus, so spend the rest of this day with your bride. You'll be amazed to find that your worries melt away in her presence."
Percy doubted that—Annabeth had some distracting features, but he didn't think that anyone, or anything, could take his mind off the conversation he'd just had. He kept that skepticism to himself, however, as he rose from his chair, bid his father a good day, and moved to leave the king's study. He was almost out the door when Poseidon called to him.
"Perseus?"
The prince stopped in front of the door, with his right hand raised to push it open. He let that hand fall as he turned towards the king.
"Yes, Father?"
Poseidon smiled, "Here's some advice from one married man to another: there will always be some task to keep you busy. You must never neglect your duties, but don't neglect your wife, either. If you spend time with her, she will adore you." The king softened his voice, "I know you did not choose Princess Annabeth as your wife, but trust me when I say that love can grow within a marriage. You can be happy together, if you try."
Percy didn't know how to respond to that, so he simply thanked his father and left the study. Nevertheless, Poseidon's words echoed in his mind as he sought Annabeth out and spent the rest of the day with her.
You can be happy together, if you try.
A small smile rose to Percy's face as he walked around the middle bailey with Annabeth. She was wrapped up in an animated speech about some subject or another, and Percy was doing his best to listen, but he found it difficult to concentrate, because a single thought kept replaying in his mind.
You can be happy together, if you try.
The prince's grin grew. He glanced sideways at his wife and realized that he was fortunate, because he didn't even have to try. Happiness came naturally to him in her presence.
A/N: I'm proud of this chapter-not because it's good, but because I had a really hard time writing it. I just couldn't get the words to flow for some reason, so it took me at least three times as long to write, but I'm proud that I worked through it! :)
This chapter was mostly focused on the plot, but I still tried to fit a few Percabeth moments in at the beginning and the end. I'm trying to keep their relationship at a realistic pace, but hopefully I've conveyed that Percy already has some feelings for Annabeth, and that those feelings are slowly growing stronger.
Thanks again for reading and please leave a review! I've included a few historical notes below (and I'm glad to hear that people are enjoying them).
Historical notes: (1) There were no cars in the Middle Ages (obviously), so travelling long distances was a lot less convenient back then. The nobles that attended Percy and Annabeth's wedding couldn't simply return home at the end of the night (it was too far), so they slept over at the castle. The highest ranking guests were given private chambers, but when all the rooms were assigned, any "leftover" guests (which was the majority) were expected to sleep on the floor in the Great Hall. The guests all left for home the next morning (or, if the wedding celebrations lasted multiple days, then on the morning after the celebrations ended). (2) The plague was a terrifying disease that killed millions of Europeans during the Middle Ages. Medieval doctors didn't know how to treat the disease, but they blamed "evil miasmas" (miasmas = fog) for causing it. They claimed that burning fires on street corners would cleanse the air and prevent the plague from spreading. They also tried to contain the disease with early methods of quarantine (boarding up homes with sick people inside-any healthy people trapped in there were out of luck). Other than quarantine and fires, most people thought that their only hope of survival was to pray to God for deliverance.
This last note isn't really historical, but the polite Canadian in me is struggling not to let Percy thank his servants. I'm actually surprised at how difficult this is, and I just want to remind people that that's how royals were back then. Percy is not being a jerk.