Disclaimer: I do not own the jewel that is PJO, it all belongs to Richard Russell Riordan, Jr. (Yes, I really did go to his Wikipedia page just to know his full name)
"Aphrodite!"
Said goddess sniffed, not pausing as she brushed her endless long brown-blonde-red-etc. hair. She pulled the brush with practiced ease, humming a sweet melody under her breath. Aphrodite was sitting on her throne on Mount Olympus, waiting for it to be filled with outraged gods and goddesses. It seemed like she didn't have to wait long.
"Aphrodite!" Poseidon flashed in angrily, his trident clenched tightly in his hands. Aphrodite idly wondered what the mortals will think about the sudden rising sea levels.
"Yes, Poseidon," she answered sweetly.
He looked absolutely furious. His black hair was whipping around his head in fury as the salty sea air filled the room. His green eyes were narrowed, like angry orbs. Aphrodite hasn't seen him like this in centuries.
He opened his mouth but then another flash appeared. Apollo was jumping up and down, his blue eyes glowing brightly like a child's. A smile stretched across his glowing, literally and figuratively, face. Aphrodite hasn't seen him like that in years.
"Oh, hello Apollo," she greeted.
"Aphrodite, you will not believe the good new-" Apollo's voice faltered when he noticed Poseidon's face. "Oh, I didn't see you there, Uncle P."
Two more flashes appeared, and both Artemis and Hermes appeared. "Aphrodite!" They exclaimed at the same time, before glancing suspiciously at each other. Aphrodite pursed her lips, staring at the large group surrounding her. Their expressions ranged from furious- Poseidon- to excited- Apollo- to confused- everyone else.
"Oh, what a surprise to see you all here," she said with dripping sarcasm.
"Aphrodite," Poseidon started, gritting his teeth, "may you care to explain what is going on?"
The goddess cocked her head to the side. "What ever do you mean?"
A vein throbbed on his head. "Why is it that my precious son is now a-"
"Chick!" Apollo interrupted excitedly. "Have you seen her? She is so hot-" A spray of water shot towards him.
Poseidon took a deep breath. "Why is he now a girl?"
"Which son?" Aphrodite asked, feigning ignorance. "You mean young Perseus?"
Poseidon exploded. "OF COURSE I MEAN PERCY WHO ELSE COULD I HAVE-"
"Uncle, please," Artemis said, placing a hand on his shoulder to calm him down. "Yelling won't solve anything."
"But we do need to know," Hermes said. "Why is Percy a girl?"
"Not that we're complaining-" Another spray of water shot itself towards Apollo.
Aphrodite set down her brush, sighing. "I don't know," she said truthfully. "I had nothing to do with what may happened to young Perseus Jackson."
Poseidon growled, pacing back and forth angrily. Sea winds flowed through the room in his agitation.
Aphrodite slyly added, "Or should I say, young Persephone Jacobs."
"You knew!" The other deities yelled at her.
Aphrodite rolled her eyes. Honestly, they could be a bit dense sometimes. "Of course I knew. I am the goddess of love and beauty, and Persephone is exceptionally beautiful." She lowered her eyes foxily. "And there are many suitors popping up around her. You know I give her lovers a five letter name. Ah, amour!"
"WHAT?!" Poseidon and Apollo exclaimed. The sea god glared at Apollo, who shrugged.
"She's hot," he commented. This time, he was wrapped tightly in seaweed. Hermes snapped a picture of him.
"It's such a shame that she wasn't my child," Aphrodite sighed wistfully. "She has the charm."
"Well, if you didn't do it, who did?" Artemis asked, the only one who was paying attention.
Aphrodite wrinkled her nose. "I'm not 100% sure," she confessed. "Although I am watching Persephone carefully."
Artemis looked as if she was thinking hard. "Who would turn Perseus into a female?"
"Kronos maybe?"
Everyone froze, staring at Hermes. He looked at them and shrugged. "Why are you so surprised, it seems like something Kronos might do, considering the war is just around the corner."
"My poor luckless daughter," Poseidon gasped, tears filling his eyes. He was being rather over dramatic.
Artemis shook her head. "But why would he turn Percy into a girl? Why not turn him into something easier to destroy?"
"Like a goat, or a pig, or a wor-" Apollo started choking when the seaweed wrapped itself tighter around his throat. Poseidon didn't even glance at him.
"My poor, luckless, human daughter," he murmured.
"Then who could have done it?" Hermes asked, discretely video filming Apollo. "Who else would have animosity for Percy?"
There was a heavy silence in the air, the deities staring at each other with raised eyebrows. Hermes sighed dejectedly and took out a notebook from his bag. The words Percy Jackson's Many Adversaries were printed on the cover. The many pages were filled with names, ranging from gods, goddesses, mortals, Titans, and monsters. "Never mind," he finally said after flipping through the notebook.
"Can you fix her?" Poseidon asked Aphrodite.
"Don't!" Apollo managed to scream through the seaweed. "Don't let her beauty go to waste-"
Poseidon, clearly pissed, smacked Apollo with his trident, hard. The sun god was knocked out on the floor, staring at the ceiling dazedly. Ichor slowly dripped from his head. "I can see the stars..." He murmured. Everyone ignored him.
"Can you fix her?" Poseidon asked again, slowly.
Aphrodite shook her head. "I don't know who or what cursed her, but I do know it's a rather powerful curse. Whoever created the curse thought long and hard about it."
Poseidon slumped his shoulders. "What am I going to do?" He murmured.
"Protect her," Artemis said, kindly. "There's nothing wrong with her being a girl. The most important thing right now is not trying to change her back, but it's keeping her safe from harm. She must be confused and vulnerable right now, perfect for Kronos to take advantage of. We must remember that only Percy can turn the tide of the war now."
The sea god straightened. "You're right, Artemis. All I can do now is protect her. I must find her as soon as possible."
"I'll help you, Uncle," Hermes promised, poking Apollo with his caduceus. The two snakes, Martha and George, writhed. "And so will Apollo once he wakes up."
"Thank you, nephew," Poseidon said. "I must now leave and try to gather as much information as I can." He left in a flash of light without another word.
Hermes snorted. "I don't know if this is a prank or an actual curse, but I must admit, it's hilarious."
"Have some respect," Artemis narrowed her eyes. "It must be hard for Poseidon, having his only human son turn into a girl."
"Oh please, you're enjoying this, aren't you?" Hermes teased.
Artemis sniffed and looked away. "That is none of your concern."
Aphrodite and Hermes exchanged amused looks.
"I can't exactly complain," Hermes chuckled. "Persephone is really cute. This is going to be fun to watch."
"This isn't a game, Hermes," Artemis scowled. Hermes winked at her.
"Anyways, I have to go," Hermes said. "If we want to keep Percy safe, we have to find her first. Come on Apollo." Hermes grunted while lifting Apollo up on his shoulder. He made a face when he realized the sun god was drooling.
"Good luck!" Aphrodite said sweetly, waving her hand daintily.
"Take care of my idiot for a brother," Artemis grumbled.
Hermes saluted them before flashing out. The room was quiet as the two goddesses looked at each other. A sly smile spread across Aphrodite's face. Artemis knew that look on her face.
"No," she said automatically. "You are not going to do it."
"But Artie," Aphrodite whined. "Imagine all the boys falling in love with Persephone right now! We need to make one quickly!"
"Aphrodite," Artemis sighed. "We can't create another betting poll about Percy's love life. It was complicated enough when he was a boy."
"Ah, but the amour!" She sang. " 'When I saw you, I fell in love and you smiled because you knew. Live, love, and let be! Love is merely madness! Love looks not with the eyes, but with mind, and therefore is wing'd Cupid painted blind.' Oh Artie, I can feel the love for Percy as obvious as the stars in the sky!"
Artemis sighed. The last time Artemis quoted Shakespeare, Twilight was born.
"Aphrodite, please-"
"You're hopeful too, aren't you?" The goddess of love added.
"Hopeful about what?" Artemis frowned.
"About Persephone," Aphrodite sang. "You want Percy to join the Hunters!"
Artemis looked flustered. "O-of course not! What made you think that-"
"Of course," Aphrodite continued. "Percy was strong as a male, but imagine her as a Hunter, leading your silly group through thick and thin. What a shame I'm going to get to her first."
"Aphrodite!" Artemis looked really mad. "Percy is a person, not a doll. We have to treat her like one."
"Oh, maybe that Roman blonde with the scar would be good for her," Aphrodite exclaimed, ignoring the moon goddess. "Ah, forbidden love at its finest!"
"Remember the last time you thought forbidden love was a good idea?" Artemis cautioned. "No one wants another war."
"Sorry, can't hear you, I have to go watch Percy's harem grow even bigger~!" Aphrodite flashed out.
Artemis sighed in the empty throne room. She wondered how everything turned into this.
Omake:
Somewhere, on the other side of the country, a blonde boy raised his head in alarm.
"Jason?" A dark haired girl asked, worried. "What's wrong?"
"It's nothing," Jason said, shaking his head. "I just thought I heard someone say my name." He felt ice cold dread make its way into his stomach.
"Well okay then," the dark haired girl said. "Anyway, back on the topic of the increased sea levels and heatwaves throughout the country..."
Jason could have sworn he heard a feminine giggle just then.
Before you ask, yes, I did just reference Jason Grace and Reyna from Heroes Of Olympus, and no, I do not regret it at all. So, I wanted to update this kind of quickly because there's no school today. So here's to an early Thanksgiving! And for those of you who don't live in the US, here's to a random Thursday!
Oh yeah, and I don't know where this story is going right now. The characters are practically writing themselves. I still know all the important plot points, i.e Who cursed Percy, why they cursed Percy, and how they find out, but everything else is just- *shakes head*.
So review please and tell me anything you want to happen in this story. I'm thinking about taking requests! Oh, and to you 8,500+ people who read this story, would it kill you to click on my profile, and vote for my poll? I really want to know who you guys think cursed Percy, and I, selfishly, just want people to vote.
So, I have to go watch Supernatural on Netflix right now (stab my heart 'cause it will hurt less everyone is freaking DYING and-!).
~Ciao~