Thanks you all so much for your support and understanding. I would have had this up earlier, but I had to go to work with my dad. This chapter is also a little shorter because I wanted to have it up as soon as possible. I don't have time to answer all the reviews like usual, so I'll just say this. Thank you all so much for your continued support throughout this story. I would like to point out one thing though. Today is this story's first birthday. It's the perfect day to update.
The reason I am bashing Molly is because I think she's a bad mother. She is constantly belittling Fred and George for their passion, and has even forgotten them. I quote, "'I don't believe it! I don't believe it! Oh, Ron, how wonderful! A prefect! That's everyone in the family!' said Mrs. Weasley.
'What are Fred and I, next-door neighbors?' said George indignantly…" She totally ignored Fred and George there. I also don't like how Molly tries to usurp Sirius in his own home. That is completely wrong, and no one tries to stop her. Third, Molly tries to replace Lily in Harry's life, which is also wrong. The only people who have any right to being parental figures to Harry are Sirius and Remus.
I think that's about it for why I don't like Molly.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognize or the song Come To Me. Come To Me belongs to the bestest band ever, The Goo Goo Dolls. Enjoy the chapter.
Chapter Eighty Seven: Night and Family
Lav's POV
I've never really liked the dark. Percy's always said it's not going to hurt me, but I think he just got corrected. A forty foot tall woman was standing in front of us. She was in a pitch black, shadowy carriage with vampire horses pulling it. I gripped Percy's hand tightly. Huge black wings protruded from her back. Everytime she beat them, a wave of darkness was sent out, making me sleepier and sleepier. Percy was staring at the horses warily. He obviously didn't like what they were saying.
"Uh, you won't let your horses eat us, right?" he asked gingerly, afraid to upset the goddess.
Nyx laughed. It sent shivers up my spine. "Of course not! I would not let my horses eat you, anymore than I would let Akhlys kill you! Such fine prizes, I will kill myself!"
My ADHD got the better of me. "No need to kill yourself, lady. We aren't that scary."
Nyx lowered her whip, confused. "What? I did not mean-"
Percy let out a forced laugh. "I should hope not. We wouldn't want to scare her, right Lav."
"Of course not, Percy dear," I said quickly. It was distracting the goddess, so I would roll with it.
"Do you know who I am?" Nyx demanded loudly.
Once again, my ADHD got the better of me. "Well I suppose you must be Night, though the brochure didn't say much about you." Percy quickly looked me in the eye before smirking.
"What brochure?" Nyx screeched.
Percy patted his pockets. "Oh no, it appears I lost it. Do you still have your copy, Lav?"
I reached into my pocket for show. "Darn, I lost mine too. But yeah, we're touring Tartarus. I guess you weren't really mentioned on the brochure because you aren't a spotlight on the tour."
"Yeah," Percy agreed. He was gripping the handle of his sword tightly, watching the horses warily. "We saw loads of cool stuff."
"The arai, Akhlys' poison fields, the River Phlegmon," I listed. "But Nyx...no, I don't recall you being mentioned more than once. I mean, how many demigods have you seen on the tour?"
"None," Nyx blanched. "That-That is unacceptable! An outrage!"
"Wouldn't it be cool to meet Tartarus?" Percy interrupted. "Or maybe Day! I bet it would be cool to meet Day."
Nyx shrieked. "Hemera!" she shrieked. "She is my daughter! Night is much more powerful than Day!"
I shrugged. "I liked the arai and Akhlys better."
"They are all my children!" Nyx screeched, flailing her whip. "I am the mother of all terrors!" Nyx lashed her whip out. Dozens of demons and minor gods appeared. All of them were children of Night. I wanted to run so bad. It was like facing a huge rattlesnake. I shuddered. Very few people knew that was my worst fear. Only those who were in the boggart lesson for DADA. I was ready to bolt, except I kept reminding myself hat if I ran I would get killed. I didn't want to die.
I tried to imagine it was a Friday at school. I was sitting on a bunch of pillows with Vati, Nina, and Hermione. We were all settling in to watch a bunch of horror movies with a bunch of skittles packets that Apollo had sent us. They couldn't hurt me because it was just a movie. I was in control.
"It's not bad," I said, struggling to keep the tremor out of my voice. "I've seen scarier. Lamia, now she was scary. I suppose we could take one picture of you all, though. I don't know how well it would turn out. You guys are pretty dark. I don't think even the flash would help." Percy nodded shakily. Even through the Death Mist I could see how terrified he was.
"Even Zeus fears me!" Nyx exclaimed angrily. She flourished her hands.
"Yeah, I guess that's cool," I shrugged. It was getting harder and harder to pretend I was safe. It was like playing with a lion inside his cage. "Well, c'mon, Perce. We need to find the Doors of Death."
Nyx smirked evilly. "But to get there, you must go through the Mansion of Night. No mortal has ever passed through."
I looked behind Nyx into the abyss. Floating 300 feet down was a huge palace. Okay, all we had to do was jump. I took Percy's hand. "I guess we could do one picture," I sighed, breathing deeply. "But it'll have to just be you and your favorite child, Nyx. We couldn't possibly fit all of you in one shot."
Immediately, all eyes turned to Nyx, who was shifting uncomfortably under her children's gazes. "But they are all equally terrifying," she stammered. The demons began to start fighting. Steadily, it grew darker and darker until I might as well have been blind. I grabbed Percy's hand, and we ran. Then we jumped.
As we fell, everything seemed to slow down. I thought of all the people I hadn't gotten the chance to say goodbye to; my dad, mom, step-mom, Vati, Padma, all my other siblings, Nina, Freya. Then I thought of the person I hadn't got to meet yet. My baby brother who was supposed to be born on July 27th. I had to survive. I had to survive at least long enough to meet him. I grunted as I landed and turned it into a roll. I quickly got up and ran, clutching Percy's hand like a lifeline, which it was.
"Keep your eyes shut," Percy hissed. He didn't have to tell me twice. The Mansion of Night was not meant for mortal eyes. So I kept my hand in Percy's and my eyes tightly squeezed shut. I started to run faster. At the last second, Percy pulled me back. Lucky he did. I almost fell over into the abyss. I clutched Percy's arm, panting more in fear than exhaustion.
"What's in front of us?" I asked softly.
"Water," Percy hissed. "But something's wrong with it. Listen."
Help!...Please...I didn't mean it...The pain...
"What is it?" I asked. I wrapped my arms tighter around Percy. He rubbed my back comfortingly.
"The River Acheron," he muttered. He shuddered. "The river of pain. Fifth river of the Underworld. "It's used to torture souls. Murderers especially."
Yes, the voices from the water hissed. Murderers like you!
I shuddered, and Percy pulled me closer. I tried not to think about it, but there were a lot of monsters who I killed. But that was self defense, right? I shook my head trying to ignore the river.
"Can you control it?" I asked.
"No," Percy said. "But you still have your wand, right?" I nodded, pulling my wand out. "Could you float us over?" I sighed in relief. This I could do easy. I had learned how to float people when Nina hurt her back and couldn't walk. I wrapped my arms tightly around Percy's neck and muttered the incantation. We began to easily float over the river.
I warily opened one eye. Even the dim red light of Tartarus was as blinding as Apollo's sun chariot after the darkness of Nyx. Gods, Apollo. I hope Nina was able to rescue him. Suddenly a figure appeared out of the dark. "Bob!" I shouted. I ran forward and enveloped him in a huge hug. Bob laughed and hugged me back.
After he had put me down, Percy asked the question that was nagging at the back of my mind. "What now?"
I pointed down the sloping hill. "To the heart," I said. A steady thump sounded all around. A black fuzzy throng of monsters were surrounding one point. "To the Doors of Death."
Apollo's POV
It took five days before Jason and I could convince the god of the South wind to let us through. I couldn't really concentrate though. My daughter was missing, and I needed to get her back. Who knows where Khione threw her!
"Apollo?" Nina interrupted my thoughts.
"Hmm, Sparkles?" I asked. I wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her into my side. "What do ya need?"
"Can you sing me a song? One that's hopeful?" Nina looked so desperate I couldn't say no, not that I would refuse my little Sparkles anything anyway. I thought for a minute before deciding on a song one of my sons wrote.
I'll be kind, if you'll be faithful
You be sweet and I'll be grateful
Cover me with kisses dear
Lighten up the atmosphere
Keep me warm inside our bed
I got dreams of you all through my head
Fortune teller said I'd be free
And that's the day you came to me
Came to me
Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo, Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo
Come to me my sweetest friend
Can you feel my heart again
I'll take you back where you belong
And this will be our favorite song
Come to me with secrets bare
I'll love you more so don't be scared
When we're old and near the end
We'll go home and start again
Doo Doo Doo, Doo Doo Doo
I caught you burnin' photographs
Like that could save you from your past
History is like gravity
It holds you down away from me
You and me, we've both got sins
I don't care about where you've been
Don't be sad and don't explain
This is where we start again
Start again
Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo, Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo
Come to me my sweetest friend
Can you feel my heart again
I'll take you back where you belong
And this will be our favorite song
Come to me with secrets bare
I'll love you more so don't be scared
When we're old and near the end
We'll go home and start again
Start again
Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo, Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo
Today's the day I'll make you mine
So get me to the church on time
Take my hand in this empty room
You're my girl, and I'm your groom
Come to me my sweetest friend
This is where we start again, again
Come to me my sweetest friend
Can you feel my heart again
Take you back where you belong
This will be our favorite song
Come to me with secrets bare
I'll love you more so don't be scared
When we're old and near the end
We'll go home and start again (yeah)
Start again (yeah)
Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo, Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo
"Thanks, 'Pollo," Nina sighed. She snuggled closer into my side. I wished she would smiled. She hasn't smiled since Freya and Leo vanished. I couldn't really blame her, but I needed something to cheer me up, and her smiles always did the trick.
"No problemo, mi corazon," I said. Nina closed her eyes and curled further into me. We sat in silence for awhile before I realized she was asleep. I kissed her head and pulled her into my lap gently. She hadn't been sleeping at all since Freya disappeared. She'd gone four days without sleep now, and you could tell. Dark bruises were under her eyes, and her skin was paler than ever. She was constantly falling asleep during dinner too. I gingerly picked her up so as not to wake her, and moved her to our room.
When I came back, Jason was back from his meeting with Auster. And the ship was moving! Jason was controlling a team of fiery horses by rope. It was actually very impressive. It took six hours, but we finally made it to Malta where Jason let go of the reins. I quickly hurried over to him and healed the blisters on his arms.
"Thanks," Jason murmured sleepily. I nodded in return and sent him below deck to get some well earned rest. But Jason refused. He pointed at a rat floating in the water.
"There's celestial bronze on that," Cassie frowned. She gripped Sirius' arm in excitement. "Leo and Freya must be here!"
I grinned. I wanted to wake Nina to tell her the good news, I knew she'd be mad at me if I didn't, but I also wanted her to sleep. In the end, I decided her sleep was more important. That way, she could actually talk to Freya when we retrieved her. Tonks ran below deck to get the others and tell them the good news. SHockingly, Gleeson was the first to scamper above deck.
"Where are the cupcakes?" he shouted crazily.
We found Leo and Freya on top of the city fortifications. Everyone exchanged hugs except Remus and Nina. Remus had stayed back on the ship to watch over Nina while she slept. Freya clung to me tightly.
"Don't ever let me go again, Daddy," she made me promise. I quickly agreed and decided then and there that my baby wouldn't date until she was at least fifty.
"What happened, sweetheart?" I asked Freya.
Freya frowned sadly. It broke my heart to see one of my children so upset. "The mean lady sent me and Uncle Leo to a weird island. There was a girl there named Calypso. She said she was stuck on the island. We were too until Uncle Leo built a raft for us. Auntie Callie couldn't come though."
"What do you mean she couldn't come with you?" I asked grumpily. "Zeus was supposed to dissolve the magic that kept her. That's what Percy and NIna wished for last summer when they defeated Kronos. They turned down godhood to free the peaceful titans."
"Well she isn't free," Leo snapped. He scratched his arm angrily. "C'mon, let's get out of here. I missed my ship." Leo stalked off.
"Where's Mommy, Daddy?" Freya asked as we started walking back onto the ship with everyone else.
"She's asleep, sweetheart," I replied, brushing my hand through my daughter's golden hair. "She's very tired because she's been so worried about you."
Freya's blue eyes widened almost comically. "I'm sorry, Daddy. I didn't mean to make you and Mommy worried."
I quickly shushed Freya. "Hush, Sunshine. It's not your fault, it's Khione's. She's a very mean goddess." Freya frowned slightly and buried her face in my shoulder. I smiled slightly and continued running my fingers through her hair, lulling her to sleep.
Nina's POV
I was awoken by someone landing on my bed. When had I gotten here? "Hey, Sparkles," Apollo murmured in my ear. I groaned and shoved him away. I was tired. "You're gonna wanna wake up for this one." I grumbled and opened my eyes only to be attacked by a blonde blur."
"Freya?" I choked out.
"Hi, Mommy," she giggled. "I'm sorry for worrying you." I stared at her for a second before wrapping her in a tight hug and pulling her against me.
"Are you hurt? Did Leo take good care of you? Where did Khione send you? Were you okay there? Is Leo okay? What happened?" Freya didn't reply. She had fallen asleep in my arms. Apollo laid down on the bed next to us. He carefully explained everything to me, keeping his voice low so as not to wake Freya. I was glad Freya was okay, but I was also sad about poor Calypso. I mentally promised myself to help her when this whole mess was over. I fell back asleep with my daughter in my arms and Apollo's arms wrapped around the both of us.