Hermês had been getting ready to start his hunt for Leaneíras when Apóllōn called out to him.
There was still anger clinging to his elder brother, a darkness to his beautiful face that bequeath his wrath. Hermês knew without a doubt that his anger poured into his domains, and he could only imagine the consequences that came from it. Complications in healing, a twisted tongue for poetry and song, burning as the sunlight beamed harshly, prophecies that foretold destruction...
His Brother, for all that he was a loving god, was also a jealous god with a wrath that could destroy the world in seconds. He was the god who punished and destroyed the wicked and overbearing, The god that lends a helping hand and gives reprieve from the evil of the world. He had the power of visiting men with plagues and epidemics. It shook something within Hermês every time he heard the mortals minimize the influence that his brother held. He was the most loved god right after their Father. Ζεύς may have been the national god of all the Greeks. The God of the gods. But it was Apóllōn who stood at his side as the national divinity of the Greeks, he who was represented in all the ways which arts were capable of. He who stood next to Father Ζεύς alongside Athênê and composed the Holy Trinity.
Apóllōn was the most Greek of the Greeks.
Hermês approached him, gaze at his brother in wonder, heart entranced with pleasure. Hermês the guide, the mighty giant-killer, stood there, spellbound.
When people looked at him, he was the beacon of light at the end of the tunnel. When he became associated with Hêlios', the words were even more loving. Because to look at him, light as bright as the sun; they only thought good things. He was welcoming and helpful and healing. A symbol that the dark days would not last.
(Unless they saw his wrath. Unless he lived up to his name. He was The Destroyer. He healed just as he plagued. He was too bright; too harsh; too much.)
He was the perfect ideal of youthful manliness. It was no wonder that there were those that had been believed to be the twin brother of Aphrodítē.
"Tater tot," the loving voice of her brother called to him. "Ermis?"
Hermês blinked, shaking his head as he approached his brother. Huákinthos gave him a knowing look, his hair crowned in a mixture of his own flowers and laurel leaves. That was right. They might not speak on it. Dáphnē was their third blessing, and it was the special allowance of Artemis alongside Huákinthos and Apóllōn that she was able to be a Huntress. It was an open secret, but no one would risk the wrath of Ζεύς' favored son to comment on it.
"What is it that you need?"
Apóllōn smiled, waving him forward to look at a pool of water before them.
"Scrying, brother," he playfully mocked as the elder god swiped his hand over the water. Apóllōn laughed lightly, "Oh, hush. It works and you know that I appreciate all forms of divination."
The image in the water swirled to show Drew sitting on the windowsill of her cabin, pouting furiously. Her siblings were all asleep around her.
"Now, watch," Apóllōn murmured. A raven cawed, landing on the windowsill in front of her. It stared at her with its dark eyes.
"You do know that the children associate your ravens with death, right," Hermês mocked. Apóllōn shot him a glare before turning back to the vision pool. Much to Hermês' shock, the raven shook itself and its black plumage faded away to glistened as white as the clouds in the sky (when Father was in a good mood, of course.) Drew startled, blinking in shock before the raven cawed again, expanding its wings in a clear sign to follow.
Drew stared once more before springing into action. She clasped her necklace back around her neck and tiptoed into the closet to change out of her pajamas. She cast a glance around at her siblings before pushing the window open and climbing out.
"Aphrodítē is going to kill you," he stated matter-of-factly.
"She can try after I save my sister," Apóllōn shot back. They watched as the raven led her in long loops around the camp, cawing in warning whenever the harpies got too close before Apóllōn muttered threats to them to fall back. The part of Dionysos that was stationed at the Camp awakened, turning towards them before focusing on Drew. Amusement came from their younger brother alongside a bit of affront for them subverting his authority at the camp.
As if he wouldn't have figured out that she snuck out.
He said nothing though, standing aside as Apóllōn continued to lead her towards the pegasi stables before directing their attention towards the lake where Perseus was speaking with his own bonded pegasus.
"Poseidón is going to kill us all," Hermês murmured horrified, not that he was going to stop the boy. Far be it for him to lose more people in the quest to locate his Leaneíras. He then turned towards his Brother. "Why are you helping Drew? You know she searches not for Artemis."
"Tis why I know that Aphrodítē would not move against me," Apóllōn stated. "She used your sons to gift my Phoebe a poisoned shirt to remove her from the quest. Why, I do not know."
"Maybe it was to get Perseus on the quest," he pointed out. "She always speaks of the love the siblings have for one another."
"Regardless of her intentions, I will not stand for an attack on one of my own," he sniffed, even if he technically gave up parental rights when she became a huntress. "And I have watched over this one. I wish to make her my champion."
Huákinthos and Hermês shared looks of shock. The last time Apóllōn favored a mortal that was not of his own seed; they went on to become the first emperor of Roma. And well, the time before that was Héktōr and of course before that was Huákinthos himself. The white raven approached the child of doves, placing something that glittered silver in her hand.
Hermês recognized it immediately. It was an amulet of many faces. One that was crafted by Kirkê with a metal that could only be found within Hyperborea. The same metal that Apóllōn's bow was crafted from. It was enchanted to alter the appearance of the owner (and only the owner) according to her wishes. It came with a limit to how much it could be used, and it had been gathering dust for eons as the gods were shapeshifters, so Apóllōn had no need for it, but it was... it was still something worthy of awe.
"She is an archer," Apóllōn stated. "And while she did train under Érōs at one point, her skill is all her own. When she attends competitions, she never fails to murmur a prayer to Artemis and I and every win whether it be a medal or trophy, she gifts to us if she is allowed to keep it. She is on track to participate in the Olympics. She named her arrows after my sister and me. Her quiver after Delos. Her bow after my Mother. How can I not reward such faith?"
"You breed resentment with your own children," Hermês pointed out. "Especially those that also show interest in furthering their skill." Wasn't one of them interested in going to the Olympics also or was that one of Huákinthos' children that the couple masquerade as Apóllōn's?
"My children and legacies have my favor either way," Apóllōn waved off. "But this one..." His gaze tracked her as she approached the pegasus that Hermês noted to have attracted Leaneíras' interest so long ago. The creature seemed to be waiting for her, using its own snout to unlock the stall before trotting out with its head held high. Drew met its gaze evenly. The animal crouched for her to climb on and in seconds, they were gone from the camp.
It took him but a moment to realize that they were following after Perseus who was following behind the vehicle that the quest members were on.
"I am surprised that Annabeth is not trying to sneak out," Hermês murmured.
"I placed deep sleep upon her psyche," his elder brother admitted. "She will awaken with the rest of her siblings when it is too late for her to achieve anything. Dionysos and Kheirôn both will keep a close eye on her to make sure that she does not leave." And Kheirôn would watch Ethan and Alabaster also to make sure that they did not sneak away.
"The quest only asked for five members," Huákinthos pointed out.
"It's all taken care of, my dear." Apóllōn then turned to him as they sped throughout the state. "Now tell me, what is your plan?"
"My plan?"
"Naí, your plan. How do you plan to rescue Leaneíras?" Apóllōn eyed him in suspicion. "You do have a plan, correct? I will not lose another sibling to those vermin."
It, of course, had nothing to do with the fact that after Artemis, Hermês was his favorite sibling.
Technically speaking, Hermês planned was to visit every punished Titani that they had, see if Leaneíras was there. If she wasn't, he'd just give them a word of advice on what would happen if they did target her. If she was there, then he would just kill everyone and build his next temple out of their skull. If he managed to control his wrath enough, however, then the plan changed to him to pull them apart bit by bit and never letting them heal while stringing them above Tartara and burying the pieces of their body across the world where the humans would find it at later dates to display in their little museums.
"Hermês," Apóllōn groaned as he explained that. Hermês did not see the issue. It was very thought out. He even accounted to spare a four-minute session for Poseidón to have a turn. "Did you not account for backup forces or if tis was a trap to lure you in as they did Artemis? If they captured you, the messages of the god would be left to Iris and Peithō and Tritôn that is true, but the messages of Father would be at risk for exploitation and that is without mentioning the souls of the dead as you are also the psychopompós. That puts Thanatos at risk and the dead shall walk again if you are not there to lighten his load."
When Apóllōn put it like that, it did sound bad but...
Hermês met his gaze evenly. "When Huákinthos was stolen away from you-" Both flinched at the reminder of those dark days. "You spared not an ounce of your wrath to hunt Zéphyros down. You spared one second to lodge an arrow within him before attempting every remedy and every herb and every method, creating and destroying all sources of healing in your attempt to save him. You chase Zéphyros down to every end of the earth and then some and tis was only because of Father calling you off did you spare him some reprieve." He turned his gaze onto the mortal world. "When Pallas was struck down and her image stolen away from Troy, did Athênê not punish every Achaeans that had a hand in the ransacking of her temple? Did she not allow Diomēdēs to reach old age because of this before she raised him to godhood as he was the third member of their polycule? Or when Kallistô was impregnated by Father, did Artemis not transform her in her anger and jealousy to a beast who Father later raised to the stars? Or when Ôriôn was slain by Gaea for his arrogant boast to kill every beast upon the earth, did she not beg of Father to raise him to the stars even though he still hunted the lands for my Mother and Aunts? We had a war that lasted ten years when Helénē was taken from her beloved. You know as well as I that there is a reason that Déspoina's true name was known only to a few and lost to history."
Twas a terrifying thing and Dēmḗtēr still smiled centuries later whenever she recalled the screams that echoed the lands when Déspoina learned about what happened to her Androgeōs. (And there was a reason that Labyrinth was a walking death trap. Yes, Pasiphaë's anger gave it power. Yes, Ariádnē's power infected it with madness. Yes, Daidalos continuous escape from Death fueled its soul. But Déspoina was the unnamable "Mistress of the Labyrinth" at Knossos in Krḗtē and the maze became her playground for all that displeased her no more than those that cause harm to her Beloved.)
"All of that, Apóllōn, you have borne witness to. Is it truly so shocking that I would do the same? I know these risks. I take full responsibility if any of ir befalls us, but I cannot just sit back and do nothing. I feel as if someone was walking on my grave... Me! A deathless god! But I feel as if I am unraveling at the seams the longer she is missing. How cursed this marking is to bring her into my life just for whomever to steal her away from me. I love her, brother. From the moment I knew of her... Όχι, I loved her before I even knew her. The way she smiles when she walks into a room or when she blushes when I tuck a piece of her hair behind her ear. The way she rants when she's irritated and all the little niche pieces of knowledge she learned. The way she learns everything she can about our cultural both archaic and modern and pretends that it is not because she is actually interested. I love how protective she is of our blessing even when she pretends that she hates it. I love how ambitious she is about the things she cares about and how nonchalant she becomes about things that she cannot be bothered with, which is just about everything in the world. I love her dry wit and the darkness of her humor. With her around, I feel as if I have enough strength to conquer everything. She has trouble expressing herself with words and yet, I know everything she has to say through her eyes alone. Brother, please. I cannot do this without her. Never again."
There were tears in Apóllōn and Huákinthos' eyes and that was all the warning he received before they threw themselves at him. It felt more like a straitjacket than a hug, but he sank into it all the same.
"Look," Huákinthos gasped as he pulled back. The Brothers turned their heads. Perseus slipped on what looked to be Annabeth's cap of invisibility. Hermês was impressed. There may be a thief within him yet. He hadn't noticed when he managed to steal it, and Drew had already switched her form into someone else.
Drew was sneaking around the mall area whereas Perseus was - a growl slipped from Hermês. The manticore.
Apóllōn placed a hand on his shoulder as Hermês moved to leap down to the earth. "Wait," his brother stated with furrowed brows. "We may be able to locate both Artemis and Leaneíras."
The manticore headed across the mall where Drew's hidden form was looking around. The demigoddess paused as the manticore crossed the street and climbed the steps of the Museum of Natural History. The mist must have slipped just in time for her as she moved to follow with determined steps.
The Brothers shared looks especially as their gazes were blocked as they tried to peek within. They turned as one, heading for the main hall to inform Father on what they learned.
Leaneira awakened in a DIY gothic princess room. There was an IV drip attached to her. She had been changed out of her clothes once more and into a short, knee-length tunic. Her foot was chained to the bed like a medieval ankle bracelet.
"You're awake," a voice stated from the other side of the room. Lea rolled her head to the side. "Be careful," the voice chastised as they moved closer. "You're still weak."
Trent appeared beside her, grabbing some pillows to support her back as he helped her sit up. Lea weakly snatched away from him, not caring about the flicker of hurt that appeared on his face at her actions. He smoothed his features though, continuing to help her fluff the pillows and checking on the drip beside her. He sighed as he took a seat.
"There is still time for you to join us," he said. Lea gave him a look of incredulity. He just tricked her into holding the freaking sky - which should be scientifically impossible, but Lea never really believed in science either so that wasn't a really a good argument - and he thought she was going to join his cause? Lea did enough weightlifting that she was never going to have to work out again. Her abs should have abs. "And you will be more powerful than the gods. I promise."
"What happened to you?"
"I'm still me, Nene." She flinched from the use of that nickname. How dare he try to ruin it for her. "Nothing has changed. We can make a difference. We have the power now to actually fight against 'the Man' and against tyranny. We aren't weak. Just like old times."
"Go to hell!"
Trent snarled, eyes flashing. "What happened to you? The Leaneira that I know would agree with me. Hell, the Leaneira I know would have started her own rebellion."
"Then I guess you didn't know me at all," she sneered back. He mimicked her expression before his features softened. He grabbed a hold of her hand and cupped it affectionately. "Is it because of Hermes? You're safe here, Lea. We'll get you some help. Once we get rid of them, you won't have to worry about him anymore. We'll even find a way around your khaos-mark. No one would have to worry about them anymore."
"What fucking grooming, Trent," she practically yelled. "And who even told you about him? I certainly didn't."
"Luke, of course. He wasn't really fond of the idea of calling a girl five years younger than him Stepmother."
"At least that's one thing we can agree on," she murmured. Lea wasn't fond of the idea of being called Stepmother.
"Come on, Lea. How many times are you going to make me beg? Join us. We aren't weak. And the two of us can convince Medea and Drew together."
He said it so sincerely that she almost thought he was using charmspeak. But considering that she still thought it was stupid ass suggestion, she figured that she was in the clear.
"Why are you even doing this?"
"I'm doing this for you and me and Medea," he said. "I'm doing this for all the demigods out there that are wondering if their parents even love them. The ones that wonder if they were nothing more than just accidents. I'm doing this so no one else can grow up with absent parents."
"Wow, you're going to stop the mortals too? And what about the animals that abandon their kids at birth?"
"Anything is possible with magica," Trent assured her. "We will raise Mount Othrys right here. It will be stronger and greater than Olympos. With my magica and yours, we can do anything ."
He twirled his fingers, silver mist twisting around them and the only mirror in the room shimmered. She could see black walls rising, a terrible and beautiful palace rising around them, made of fear and shadow. She could see an image of herself, dressed like a goddamn $2 hooker strutting down the halls with her hair big and puffy and filled with spritz like the eighties, bold red lipstick, a dress so short that she could see her underwear peeking out. She saw better dressed prostitutes about a block away from B.A.G.
(Drew was always giving them money to end their "shifts" early and protection charms since her Mother was the patron goddess of prostitutes. She even referred a few to one of the secret brothels her Mother established in the city alongside some for the escort service she oversaw so long as everyone was over the age of 21.)
"As soon as I get my strength back," Lea's eye twitched. She wanted nothing more than to rip that image into shreds. Was that how he saw her? As a damn conquest? Or would he say something about her being sexually liberated, never mind the fact that she was a virgin and as soon as she found a way to convince Artemis, then she would be one for all eternity. "I'm gonna wax your ass like a candle. Capisce? You might as well start running now because I will not stop until you're a smear on the ground."
Trent groaned like an overgrown man-child when their favorite team lost a game. "Lea, please. Be serious. We can do this. You know we can. That is why you are trying to talk me into circles. I'm doing this for your little camp so that they can grow up and become adults. I'm doing this so that the kids at my camp can be kids instead of child soldiers. We can combine forces and overthrow the Olympians. We are not weak, Leaneira. All we need is your help."
"Your camp?"
"Hm? Oh, yes. The roman forms of the gods. Jupiter, Venus, and Mars? They have children in those forms. My mom is Trivia who you would call Hecate. We have our own camp called Camp Jupiter. The New Rome. And if you join us, you can help both our camps create a new world. Something better and more long-lasting than even the Roman Empire."
"Every single part of that speech horrifies me."
"The single choice is the only one you can choose, Lea. Seriously. Olympos. To preserve or raze."
Some distant part of Leaneira tensed. Something within her click. She could absently hear faint echoes of something slithering across the ground. A chill moved through her as if icy cold winds gathered around her. She could hear a symphony of voices, hissing: The tapestry is not ready .
On the outside... Lea stared at Trent in silence. "You are seven pennies short of a nickel."
He leaned closer into her space, placing a hand against her cheek. "Help us, Lea. We need you. Please."
"I already said no," she sneered. "Your rambling won't change my mind. You knew what my answer would be the moment that you and that blond bimbo trapped me under the sky and if you keep acting slow and I'm going to slow motion that ass whooping too."
Anger flashed in his eyes. "I don't even know why I bother," he scoffed. "We don't need you. Percy and your darling cousin, Thalia, are on their way here. And honestly, we only need one of you. Can you guess who Luke's picking?"
Leaneira scowled as best as she could. "You touch either one of them and I'm gonna fucking fold your clothes while you still in em. You understand me? I'll put seven cans of ravioli in a pillowcase and handle your ass."
A low laugh echoed from the doorway. Her gaze turned to meet the image of Luke leaning against the threshold with seven beautiful women behind him. Lea had been working on keeping her comments to herself. She heard it a lot growing up. If you don't have anything nice to say, then don't say it all. She didn't always do a good job following it; sometimes the insults just rolled off the tongue but... she kept her mouth closed from what she really wanted to say then.
The same could not be said for her facial expression.
Her nose scrunched in disgust and she pursed her lips as she turned her head away.
Luke looked horrible. Terrible. Disgusting. He was horribly pale like someone just put a bunch of gray makeup on his face and dried out the blond in his hair.
"Adoringly threatening as always, iCarly," he smirked. He shook his head, tilting just a bit and casting shadows across his face. "Hello, Leaneíras," he stated softly. Lea grimaced. No, it didn't roll off the tongue in the same way that Hermes did. "Though, I suppose Stepmother is more accurate."
No one was certain if the way that her face flushed as green as her eyes came from his words or the fact that she was still very weak in strength and the binding spell may have a few adverse effects.
"Ahh and before I forget, I would like to introduce you to your new caretakers during your stay with us," the man-child continued. "Next to me are the infamous Pleiades, daughters of her Lady Plêionê and General Atlas. And they oft bewailed their sire's labour of sustaining heaven. They all gave the gods children and yet they still place the seven of them in the sky where Orion chases after them month after month like they aren't companions to his blessing. Every start of the harvest, they emerge from the depths of the sea to relieve the weight on his shoulders and fly away from Orion who is always there. You see how cruel that is, Lea? That is part of the reason that we have to get rid of them."
Unseen by him, one of the nymphs whose facial features look disturbingly familiar flashed with a hint of something.
Lea scoffed, looking down her nose at him as best as she could. "Take your good talking ass to the pulpit and preach it. I don't want to hear it. So go on now. Get! And stop calling me, Lea. You have no right to be familiar with me, asshole. I told you what I was going to do the last time I saw you, so you should really stop while you're ahead before I leave you where you're already pathetic and a loser at."
Luke shook his head. "Its always the same with you, Leaneira. Always. You understand soon enough. Anyway, as per the General's command, they will be your caretakers until the Winter Solstice." He turned to the woman beside him. The familiar looking one. "This is my, uh..." His ears tinged red just a bit. "This is my grandmother. Maia. The eldest of the Pleiades. She, the rich-tressed Nymphe with the lively eyes."
And her technical Mother-in-Law.
Lea felt like she was on a knock-off version of Madea's Family Reunion.
"And these are my, ahem, great-aunts. They are all outstanding in beauty among Atlas' violet-haired daughters. The Lovely Têygetê, and dark-faced Êlektrê, and shining Alkyonê, and bright Asterope, and fair Kelainô, and Maia, and Sparkling-Face Meropê. They'll take good care of you until the Winter Solstice and after that, well... unless you change your mind, we won't have any other need for you. Though I suppose getting rid of you now would be better for us all. Taking you out cold weaken the gods' morale. Poseidon and Hermes would both be weak and we can get rid of Percy too. You know, I think I like that plan more."
"Wait," Μaia called aloud, holding her hands out in earnest. Her features were stern, giving no hint to her inner thoughts, but Lea thought she could see a hint of panic within her eyes. It could have been her imagination or Lea had managed to delude herself into believing the goddess would actually care about her son's blessing. "Wait, sound out the will of the titani– that first. If the decrees of wily Krónos commend the work, you can kill the princess herself and spur on all the rest. If the titani are against it, then I say hold back!"
Trent nodded his head from beside her. "The General said to wait until the Solstice, Luke. If she doesn't join us by then, you can do whatever you want until then, I'm in charge of making sure she turns."
"You're not doing a good job at it," Luke sneered. Trent scoffed. "You've never actually tried to argue with her. She's stubborn." Her ex-best friend turned to look at her. "But if words don't work, magica always can."
Did he... was he?
"You're going to use magic to brainwash me?" She laughed harshly. "I thought you were smarter than that, Trent. Even magic won't convince me to choose you."
"We'll see," he stated ominously. She rolled her eyes, turning away. "If they put your brain in a bird, it'd bark."
One of the goddesses giggled, but Lea couldn't tell which one. She knew Maia though. Her son looked so much like her that it was no wonder that she had seemed familiar to Lea. Her green eyes traced over Lea's form in disapproval before turning to look back at Luke. "A sweet smooth journey to victory, radiant Luke, that is what you seek but a god will make it hard for you – I know – you will never escape the one who shakes the earth, quaking with anger at you still, still enraged because you poisoned the Lightning Retriever and stole away the Twice-Blessed, his dear children. And my dear son, for all the love that he secrets away in his heart for you, it will not grant either of you any forgiveness for the harm to his Beloved. Have better care for how you treat her as I am sure that their care for her will be all the strength they need to win."
"So you say," Luke grumbled. "Come on, Trent. We need to get back to tracking the Ophiotaurus."
Lea's eyes widen as the boys walked out leaving her with the seven women. She shrunk into herself as all of them turned to look at her at once.
And then, Maia's features broke out into a bright smile. "Oh, let me see you, daughter." She moved closer, helping Lea to her feet and holding her afloat when she almost sank down to the floor. "My Ermis, papaki mou. Ah! He did well. He did well. Look at you. You are beautiful."
Lea's face set aflame. She felt like she was at Daniela's salon being paraded around everybody by Carla.
"Why... why are you helping them if you care so much about your son?"
The goddess' eyes slipped closed alongside her sisters. "Things are not as simple as they appear, Delja Leaneíras. I see truth in my Father's and Grandson's words just as I see fault in their actions. All I can do is try my best to minimize the damage." Her eyes were soft, like freshly cut grass; the kind that didn't attack your sinuses when she opened the back to look at Lea. She brushed the hair away from Lea's face. "Do not despair, daughter of Poseidón. All will end well. Things are not as dire as they seem. Your Friends and Family search for you now and soon, you will be taken back to Ermis and he will rejoice."
"And things will be better for us also," one of her sisters smiled. "A sad fate does not await the earthshaker's offspring, from whomsoever born. Not anymore. And Ôriôn with his golden bow has escaped the heavens and we no longer have to deal with he."
The women shared smiles of delight and relief.
"Father would not let him near us," another one stated with a watery smile. "And when he is defeated, we can fly down from the heavens freely once more without having to look over our shoulder."
They all cheered so loudly that even Lea couldn't help but to smile.
"Come, my daughter," Maia stated, holding her as she led her out of the room.
"Where are we," Lea asked, breathing heavily from the strain. The last time she had been this weak was when she had a bad reaction to the Thorazine that she had been prescribed for no fucking reason.
"We are at the top of Mount Tamalpais," Maia explained, leaning them towards the top of the mountain. "In these times now with the heart of Western Civilization moving to this land, this is where our sisters dwell on the Hesperian and where Father through hard constraint upheld the wide heaven with unwearying head and arms, standing at the borders of the earth before the clear-voiced Hesperides; for this lot wise Ζεύς assigned to him."
Lea inhaled sharply as they reached the top. It was beautiful especially with the way that the rays of the sun brushed teasingly against the tree tops like old friends. A pretty mixture of sunset and twilight that made her ache with a need to grab some coloring pencils even if she couldn't draw a stick figure to save her life.
From where they stood, she could see out towards the ocean and she wondered if her so-called Father could sense her so close. If he knew that she was here, would he save her? He helped her last summer after escaping Luke's boat. She had spent her down time with Kirkê coming up with thirteen years worth of Father's day cards and crafting a matching necklace like the ring he gave her as a show of thanks.
There weren't any weird shark or dolphin or whale attacks so she had figured that she was in the clear.
Well... if it ain't broke... don't fix it.
"Hear me –Poseidon, god of the sea-blue mane who rocks the earth!" Leaneira murmured as she looked out at the sea. "If I really am your daughter and you claim to be my father – come, grant that Trent, betrayer of friendship, Trivia's son a broken man and let him find a world of pain at home!"
So, she prayed and the god of the sea-blue mane, Poseidón, heard her prayer.
WORD COUNT: 5,702
Words to know:
papaki mou - my little duckling
Delja – This Polish girls' name means 'daughter of the sea'; I'm using it as an epithet for Lea.
Things to Know:
1) The Hesperides were not always considered the daughters of Atlas, but instead the daughters of Nyx.
2) There was also one that stated that they were the daughters of Hesperis and Atlas. Hesperis was believed to be a goddess of the evening and the daughter of Hesperos, one of gods of Venus.
3) Apóllōn was the one to renamed Hēraklēs and Ζεύς's favorite mortal son was Hēraklēs whom he supported throughout his trials.
4) Lea, Drew, and Medea's theme song is Typa Girl by BLACKPINK.
Comments from the Author:
1) Lea's part looked completely different at first and then the power went out in the middle of me writing it. Fml. Also, America confirmed that aliens exist. No one tell Lea.
2) We talk about Ζεύς and how many kids that he has, but we never talk about Poseidón or Ôkeanos. Ôkeanos has them all beat, but Poseidón is about equal with Ζεύς.
3) Atlas is mostly counted as having 15 daughters and 1 son, but due to the uncertainty, The Hesperides are included as his children.
4) There were a couple of probable names for Zoë as some authors did note that there were more than three Hesperides. I chose Lipara which means Perseverance as her previous name.
5) Meropê is actually the star-nymph that has her face turned. She married king Sisyphos. She was so ashamed of her husband's crimes that she hid her face in heaven, causing the seventh star of the Pleiades to gradually fade from sight.
6) I wanted to give the twins' titles, but Percy canonically doesn't get any other Son of Poseidón/Neptūne or Hero/Savior of Olympos. And most of his deeds have already been done before in the myths so its redundant to give him those titles therefore, "Lightning Retriever" was created and yes, he shares it with Annabeth and Grover though ppl are usually referring to him when they say it. It's like how Kronidês is a patronymic from Krónos, meaning son of Krónos, but its more commonly given to Ζεύς instead of shared between the three brothers. Out of the sisters, only Dēmḗtēr has the epithet of Rheia eukomos thugater which means Daughter of rich-haired Rheia. Lea gets Twice-Blessed as she is a child of the Big Three and the blessing of Hermês. Yes, it is liberated from CHARMED. I suppose I could have given him a title in regard to the Helm of Darkness, but Idk. It doesn't have the same kind of ring to it.
7) The last chapter of this story will detail my thought process on some of the topics and characters especially in regard to the pairings for soulmates. So, yes, it will be explained on why and how the maiden goddesses have soulmates in the ending credits though it should be easy to infer since I did already state that not all pairings are romantic.
8) Déspoina is the daughter of Dēmḗtēr and Poseidón and sister of Arion. She was worshipped under the title Déspoina alongside her mother, one of the central figures of the Eleusinian Mysteries. Her real name could not be revealed to anyone except those initiated into her mysteries.
9) Androgeōs is the son of Minos and Pasiphaë, brother of Ariádnē, and a prince of Krḗtē. His death is the reason that Minos had the people of Athens sacrificed every 7yrs to the Minotaur.
10) A triad, in a religious context, refers to a grouping of three gods, usually by importance or similar roles. A triad of gods were usually not considered to be one in the same being, or different aspects of a single deity like the Christian Trinity. The Classical Greek Olympic triad of Ζεύς, Athênê, and Apóllōn.
10a) Makes sense. The two of them are hailed as his favorites. Aside from Artemis obviously, Athênê was considered his counterpart (Hekatê was his chthonic counterpart).
10b) Ζεύς is actually confronted about the favoritism he shows them. In Book V of the Iliad, Árēs accuses Ζεύς of being biased in favor of Athênê because "autos egeinao" (literally "you fathered her", but probably intended as "you gave birth to her").
10c) Ζεύς gave Apóllōn the seat next to him on his right side. His own wife doesn't sit at his side. He gave Apóllōn various gifts, like a golden tripod, a golden bow and arrows, a golden chariot and the city of Delphi. Apóllōn demanded that all other methods of divination be made inferior to his, a wish that Ζεύς granted him readily. When Gaia gave mortals the ability to see the future in their dream and took the gift of prophecy from Apóllōn. He went to his Father, "wound his baby hands around Ζεύς", asked him to take the wrath of the earth goddess away. Ζεύς smiled, that the child so quickly came to ask for worship that pays in gold. "He shook his locks of hair, put an end to the night voices, and took away from mortals the truth that appears in darkness, and gave the privilege back again to Apóllōn.
10d) Athênê was essentially urban and civilized, the antithesis in many respects of Artemis, goddess of the wild which is another reference to being his counterparts (and Hekatê as his maternal cousin who is also frequently identified with Artemis.) There is a general understanding that three of them are the favorites of Ζεύς.
10e) Another sign that is because they were both born with their weapons. Well, Athênê was born in full armor and the text in Hesiod's says: (To begin with, the first, the fourth, and the seventh - on which Lētṓ bare Apóllōn with the blade of gold - each is a holy day.) Which could mean he was born with a golden sword or just acknowledging him as the god with a golden sword. Most lean towards the former though!
REPLIES:
mide1718: Apologies. This is going to be long.
Since this deals with ancient greece and its culture heavily, I focus on topics from Homer and Hesiod. Anything from a roman poet or a poet that wrote while under the roman empire does not hold any weight for me even if they were greek. That's mainly because a Roman is not going to be trusted on a topic about Greece. And for the greek born into the Imperial Roman era, well, the education would be heavily influenced by both cultures but leaning more heavily towards a roman way of thinking. I actually own copies of the Iliad, the Odyssey and Theogony, so I can pull from there, but I use theoi/com and wikipedia and I know wikipedia isn't all that reliable, so I go through a multitude of sources to fact check. I'm not really a big fan of Plato, but the line about Aphrodítē comes from The Symposium. You'll find me using other poets like Ovid, Virgil, and Nónnos if I want to add drama or something that they proclaim resonated with me and the story that I'm weaving. For example, Peithō, is only considered the wife of Hermês in Nónnos' Dionysiaká which is basically fanfiction of ancient greece. (I'm really not a fan of it.)
Now I will use Virgil's Aeneid, when it deals with Ancient Rome, and I may pull things from Ovid but that's rare. The Aeneid was written to be similar to the Odyssey whereas Ovid's metamorphoses were written for entertainment value and as a mockery to those that worshipped the gods that somehow gets treated as fact. (See: Medusa's story because Hesiod details a different account.)
If you read my story Surface Pressure (which I do plan to rewrite for a better articulation), you'll see that I write about the differences between Greek gods and Roman gods because there are very key differences to them. They are not the same gods. Iūnō and Iūpiter were twins whereas Ζεύς and Hḗrē were only siblings. Honestly, the only common denominator that they have is Hēraklēs and Aineías. But those differences are something that I'm going to expand on in the rewrite.
Shameless promo: Be on the lookout for over pressure: the rewrite of surface pressure and make love, not war: a Drew and Octavian-centric HoO rewrite has begun posting.
(I might go ahead and post the rewrites to The Sea Twins and the Ocean's Offspring)
Anyway! On to the rest of your comment...
While Hḗrē is Ζεύς's seventh wife in Hesiod's version, in other accounts she is his first and only wife.
In the Iliad, the pair are described as having first lay with each other before Krónos is sent to Tartarus, without the knowledge of their parents. Ζεύς implies their marriage was some sort of elopement in the Iliad. According to the Homeric poems, she was brought up by Ôkeanos and Têthys, as Ζεύς had usurped the throne of Krónos; and afterwards she became the wife of Ζεύς, without the knowledge of their parents.
BUT when you look at the etymology of the name of Hḗrē has several possible and mutually exclusive etymologies; one possibility is to connect it with Greek ὥρα hōra, season, and to interpret it as ripe for marriage and according to Plato ἐρατή eratē, "beloved" as Ζεύς is said to have married her for love.
It was later authors such as Theokritos and Pausanias that brought mention of Ζεύς transforming into the cuckoo bird to explain the presence of a cuckoo seated on the sceptre that Hḗrē carries. So, I don't agree with the idea of rape.
Now a recurring theme that comes from modern scholars and something that Rick touches on and makes fun of is the drama that surrounded the Ancient Greeks. It's something the characters note also, like Annabeth says on their fall to Tartarus that the gods love tragedy, but when you look at the lines in the Odyssey.
Ζεύς says:
"Ah how shameless – the way these mortals blame the gods.
From us alone, they say, come all their miseries, yes,
but they themselves, with their own reckless ways,
compound their pains beyond their proper share."
Those lines come from Book 1 around line 37. Humans tend to blame the gods for their miseries, but humans are at fault by making their own lives a misery through reckless behavior. It's interesting because even in modern times, it still happens except the blame is laid on the feet of the Devil.
It's not a secret that the gods interfered with the affairs of mortals, but they could influence decisions, but they were chained to the fate assigned to every being by eternal laws might take its course without obstruction; and Ζεύς, as well as the other gods and man, had to submit to them. For example, look at the Trojan War. The gods were heavily influencing the war, but despite it all, Apóllōn, Árēs, Aphrodítē, Lētṓ and Artemis all fight for Troy except Troy had been prophesied to be defeated even before the Golden Apple. Paris and Hekábē were supposed to die the day he was born or the kingdom would be destroyed except Priam killed his sister-in-law, Cilla, and her son Munippus who had given birth that same day. Even in Book Four of the Iliad, Ζεύς promises Hḗrē that Troy would be destroyed then in that war because he could have intervened and had the Argives leave with Helénē which brings implications that Troy would be destroyed at a later date for the simple fact that Paris was returned home, and you can understand why when you look at his comments. Paris is arrogant because he is a prince, he has Helénē as his trophy wife and he has the support of Aphrodítē. I can definitely see him making a snide comment and having the kingdom destroyed at another point. They cannot fight fate as seen when Huákinthos was killed Apóllōn couldn't heal him no matter what he tried. They can manipulate it as seen when Apóllōn convinced them to allow his lover, Admetus, to live past his time even though he died at a later point.
Now I say all this to come back that Hesiod clearly stated that Hḗrē is Ζεύς's seventh wife. But you come to the Homeric Hymn to Apóllōn and you read about Hḗrē going after Lētṓ.
"Only Eilithyia, goddess of sore travail, had not heard of Lētṓ's trouble, for she sat on the top of Olympus beneath golden clouds by white-armed Hḗrē's contriving, who kept her close through envy, because Lētṓ with the lovely tresses was soon to bear a son faultless and strong."
There is no mention of Árēs actually so that part comes from Callimachus, Hymn 4 to Delos which came after Homer. Now, the oldest of the Homeric hymns were probably written in the seventh century BC, somewhat later than Hesiod and the usually accepted date for the writing down of the Homeric epics so again, really when it comes to the marriage, I would go with Hesiod. But also, in Homeric texts, Lētṓ is shown standing next to Ζεύς in the absence of Hḗrē almost in the manner of a married wife, and not just one mistress among the many. Hermês also calls her "a bride of Ζεύς " in the Iliad. So why did Hḗrē go after Lētṓ in the Homeric Hymns if Lētṓ was married to Ζεύς first... could it be that she was pregnant since they "lay with each other before Krónos is sent to Tartarus, without the knowledge of their parents"?
I do believe that the two of them hurriedly to marry because she could not be seen as "tainted". The stylization of all these sources were created by—and mostly for—men. And a common theme in most reports is the subject of a woman's virginity. They were largely seen as property to men. Everything revolved around legacy. Hestia remain a virgin. In Theogony, Dēmḗtēr is considered Ζεύς' fourth wife, so Persephónē would not be considered illegitimate for either of her parents.
And that brings the question if Hḗrē was pregnant, who would be the Father? She's not married. Who took the daughter of Krónos to bed? Who impregnated her without the knowledge of her parents or her brothers? The lack of dowry could have been interpreted as proof that no legitimate marriage occurred, so if she was pregnant then her child would be illegitimate. But a dowry may have been occasionally overlooked if a bride's family connections were very favorable and Ζεύς was her brother, so it nulls the need for a dowry when he is the King of the Gods. Now that also brings into mention that Hḗrē was worshipped and held importance before Ζεύς from sources that I remember, and they share the title of being rulers over the Gods of Marriage in equal importance. As the goddess of marriage, she would be the one people looked to in regard to legitimacy of children. Thus, an elopement to legitimize her pregnancy and to take away any shame.
Pseudo-Apollodorus writes about her hatred of Hēraklēs and Dionysos because they were products of affairs BUT going by the word of Hesiod and Homer, Hermês was also a product of an affair and yet, Hḗrē did not go after him. Ζεύς is well-known as having a lot of children in Ancient Greece and yet, these two are the ones that she goes after? Why? Because they had divine rights and were destined to join the Olympians... join her house. Hḗrē is the goddess of marriage, women and family, marital harmony, and the protector of women during childbirth. What shame would have been brought to her if demidivine children that were the products of an affair by her own Husband were to join her House without due cause? Do they deserve these divine honors that are foretold in their fates? She does everything to discredit them.
Dionysos' myths are filled with him having to prove his divine blood, prove that he is divine and that he is worthy of the worship of a divine being. Ariana Stassinopoulos says in "The Gods of Greece" that: "The myths of Dionysos are dominated by an initial fierce resistance to the god, in the same way that we refuse to recognize the wild forces in us until we are overwhelmed by their power."
Hēraklēs' labors were designed to kill him or hold him back until he reached old age before he could prove himself (and that's without mentioning that in the Iliad when Alkmḗnē was about to give birth to Hēraklēs, Ζεύς announced to all the gods that on that day a child by Ζεύς himself, would be born and rule all those around him which was Argos. Hḗrē then has him swear an oath that the child born that night to a member of the House of Perseus (a child by Ζεύς himself) would become High King which is how her candidate Eurystheus got the throne because she caused him to be born prematurely at seven months because she was the patron-god to Argos and it would've been an insult if her kingdom was ruled by an affair baby.)
Ancient Greece is so interesting to look at if you read cultural into the cultural interpretations to get an understanding while also acknowledging the modern lenses that you read it through.
Anyway, to sum it all up, I believe that it was a courtship of love that was sped-run due to pregnancy and that man's love of drama confound what may have been closer to the truth. Ugh, look at you. Finding my weakness for researching and studying ancient greek culture and talking about it. You found my real hyper fixation. That's like learning a fairy's real name.