If there was a return on being the King of Ghosts, then Nico would like to be directed to it.
He could see why his elder siblings had never bothered to fully commit to the role while being content to let Mêlinoê preside over propitiations offered to the ghosts of the dead and Hekátē who was the leader of ghosts handle all things dealing with the spirits.
The ghosts barely gave him time to do anything else especially now as he relinquished his crown to Rachel. He had to get an assistant outside of their group of twelve, but he was still thankful when Connor admitted to having some gifts that dabbled in necromancy as his Father was Hermês Khthonios. That wasn't to mention Clarisse's small power of forcing deceased soldiers to her command and Katie's latent powers with rebirth.
The others tried to help them, but none of them were in the right state of mind to do anything. Will had tried to lend them a hand, but Apollôn had pulled him away to gain control of his powers when he had nearly seized in performing a divine-ordered surgery.
Nico understood all of that and he didn't really mind. The ghosts were great for recon. That's how he learned what Paris had done (and he still had not told any of the self-proclaimed older siblings of Ariadnê nor Percy as he knew how they would take and they needed to think about the very mortal people of their kingdom with all their squishy parts).
It's just that most ghosts were inconsolably angry, utterly despaired, or frantically hopeless. Their friends were the only exceptions and sometimes not even then. Silena could be found on occasion with the other ghosts gossiping and collecting information like mythomagic trading cards.
From her, he learned how Luke felt that it was his fault that Ariadnê had gotten kidnapped even though it happened due to godly intervention, and it was his punishment for kidnapping Annabeth. How he came to that conclusion Nico didn't know, but Nico's job position did not include playing therapist to the delusional.
Silena had also shown that while she was more sane of mind than Luke, even she was still prone to being inconsolably angry. She had gotten cruel and malicious the very rare times that Percy and Annabeth were at odds since Ariadnê's kidnapping. She was very pleased that Annabeth was able to see how the elder twin had felt since the day they all met.
She hadn't been the one to tell him about the times that Clarisse cried, turning into the most vicious guard dog whenever someone got too close to her friend's vulnerable side. Beckendorf had been the one to tell him that when he had ventured into Deadly Fashion looking for Silena.
He learned about how Katie burned a batch of banana muffins because she had zoned out staring into nothing while Travis had rushed in to put out the fire. Silena had stated that the other girl had been teasingly speaking as if Ariadnê was there trying to sneakily swipe some away.
That was not to mention the argument that happened between Connor and Apóllōn when the god refused to rescue Ariadnê despite the boy's pleas.
In spite of all that, he never regretted taking on the responsibility as the Ghost King. He enjoyed it on occasions especially in their time. He had mainly dealt with those that had accepted their deaths and happily regaled him with stories of grandeur as he was but a lonely, mourning preteen with nowhere else to go. He had gotten a lot of good stories when he had gone to D.O.A. Recording Studio also.
There were some that insisted on fixing him food to eat when he was in the surface world as he was much too skinny. And the signora that he had stumbled upon-
"You're looking far too skinny."
"What do you mean you're not hungry? Of course you are!"
"Tell me, do you cook anything fresh for yourself?"
"I'll cook you up some extra meals to take home anyway."
"I need to fatten you up."
"Are you sick or something? You eat now."
"You need to eat more."
All were something that his Father had found hilarious alongside when he ended up stumbling across asian women, latinas, and black women. He had been trapped in a food coma for a month as they had tried to feed him. That had only gotten worse when Lady Dēmḗtēr had caught sight of him and would not let him leave the table unless he ate all his breads and fruits that she gave him.
He could remember the ones that taught him everything that he needed to know as a child of the Netherworld (that included Minos. His Father reduced his influence as a judge greatly.) There were those who had taught him what he needed to know as a prince (and then King). Those that taught him what he needed to know as the world had changed while he remained stagnant. And the ones that taught him how to be a warrior (Percy and Ariadnê had almost tripped over themselves when he brought forth the original Perseús. And Nico knew that if they could fuck a ghost, then they would have with the way that they looked almost hungry staring at him.)
And then it was times like this that he hated the title more than anything.
There were kids younger than he had been after crossing the threshold into the Lotus Hotel. Kids that should be running around the kingdom in apparel from the STARFISH clothing line.
Two of them were sitting on the bank of the river; their gazes drawn to him as he stepped closer. Their forms were an opaque color, unseen by all but those connected to the Khthonioi. He knew without a doubt that the two of them were deceased siblings that he was getting reports about.
"Lord Nicholas," the tallest one stated as they bowed. Nico gave them a small smile, trying to put as much as comfort as possible into his voice. "Hello. What are your names?"
"I am Kilan," the tallest chirped. "This is Kalmin. We are brothers."
Nico smiled softly. They reminded him of Travis and Connor in a way. "Hello, Kilan and Kalmin. What are you two doing out here all alone?"
Kalmin smiled, bright and cheerful, eyes lit with mischief curled at the edges. He was so much like Connor. "We are waiting for our Mother. She told us to stay by the river while she retrieved our supply pack to go underground."
Nico remembered the feeling of the souls that were fluttering under his feet as he fought to defend his beloved cousin. He remembered some that were peeking out of the emergency shelters that Thalia had encouraged them to build as an invading force would go directly for the center of the kingdom so they had to get creative with the entrances. He had felt some of them flutter anxiously, but he had thought that it was from nothing more than the battle.
It was a mistake that had cost them to gentle souls.
Nico closed his eyes for a brief moment in grief before reaching for the children's hands. "Come with me. I shall lead you home." To their parents and then to the Underworld.
Percy walked over to his twin sister, playfully pulling on her ponytail as she sulked in front of the window.
"Leave me alone, Percy," she pouted.
Percy rolled his eyes, as if he would leave her alone while she was sad. "What's wrong? I heard you crying earlier."
He was her brother. He was supposed to protect her. His sister wouldn't tell him though, pouting more as she stared at the cloudy sky.
"'S nothing."
"It's something," he shot back. "We're big kids now. You said we're not supposed to cry."
Her pout seemed to deepen even more as her eyes filled with tears. Neither noticed the rain that began to pour in mockery of her tears. "Do you think Daddy hates us?"
Head tilting in confusion, Percy asked, "What? Mama said he got lost at sea. He can't hate us if he's lost."
The scowl that appeared on her face was as adorable as it was fierce. "Why did he have to go to that stupid ocean anyway?"
Percy furrowed his brow as he looked over his sister. Something was really wrong. She didn't like to talk about dad. "Mama says he was really important. What's wrong, Ari?"
Ariadnê burst into tears. Percy yelped as he rushed to give her a hug. Her lips wobbled as she sniffled, "It's the daddy-daughter and I don't have a daddy."
Percy felt bad as he tightened his hug. Their mom had come to his mommy-son dance.
"We could ask Smelly Gabe," he told her reluctantly, not surprised to see her nose scrunch in disgust.
"No. I'm staying home."
And it was not surprising to anyone that in the following weeks, the twins had been expelled.
Percy breathed deeply as he was pulled from the memory. His hand raised to his face, touching the tears that streamed down his face.
"We're big kids now. You said we're not supposed to cry."
How could he not cry when his sister wasn't at his side? He was her brother. He was supposed to protect her. He walked through Gleeson's Grove and up to his sister's cubicle. Hermês sat on the bed, fiddling with one of her scrapbooks.
"This is my mother's home on Mount Kyllene in which I was born," the god stated as he traced over a picture of Ariadnê curled in a bed clutching the Nemo plushie that their mother had bought them. She was sleeping peacefully, and Percy pointedly looked away from the love bites on her skin. The picture in the next frame showed her stretching, while her blue eyes pierced the camera.
"The Kronidês were most unnerved when we first caught sight of you all," Hermês commented. His thumb traced the picture of Ariadnê. "You have Grandfather's face but Grandmother's eyes. And she has Grandmother's face, but Grandfather's eyes."
Percy knew that. Ariadnê used it to her advantage plenty of times when titans had stumbled in face of her.
"I worry for her," Hermês admitted. "Though her tales tell of daring expeditions and great heroic deeds. I still worry for her that the girl whom we will get would not be the girl that was stolen away."
"Ariadnê is strong," Percy argued. "She's one of the strongest people I know. This won't break her."
Hermês hummed. "I admire how much you love your sister," he stated eventually. "It's almost equal in the way that she loves you too."
"Almost?"
"You love Annabeth. You love your Mother and your Father. Your cousins and your friends." The god glanced upwards towards the paintings of him and Ariadnê alongside she and Apóllōn. "But I can tell from just listening to her that if she had to choose between you and the world... she would choose you."
"Athênê once said that my fatal flaw was excessive personal loyalty. That to save a friend then I would sacrifice the world."
"Did you ever learn what was your sister's fatal flaw? Not every sibling suffers from the same."
Percy shook his head.
Hermês smiled lightly. "I would say that your sister's fatal flaw is excessive personal loyalty. I do believe that you suffer from the same but to a lesser degree alongside recklessness, self-destructive, self-sacrificing, impulsive, reckless."
"Okay," Percy stated loudly. He heard all of those before. "Okay. I get it. I'm surprised you didn't say I have a martyr complex."
Hermês laughed, "From what I understand is that you have symptoms of it being self-destructive and self-sacrificing but you don't play the victim. You have been dealt a bad hand in fate. It happens. I apologize for my hand in it."
Percy waved it away. He had made peace with everything back in the original timeline with his Hermês.
"You said that she would choose me over everything else, but, dude, uhhh, I mean Lord... she's in love with your brother. He brings out a side of her that I have never seen before. And you... she's different with you too."
"I love her just the same," the god muttered.
Hermês smiled softly, eyes dropping back down the scrapbook. He flipped the page to another picture where Ariadnê and Percy could be seen swimming at Montauk. He was moving to splash her while she floated atop of the water, tanning. Percy remembered that day. The two of them were hanging out during spring break after Thalia became a hunter. Hermes had appeared out of nowhere, cannonballing into the water. Ariadnê had gone flying into the air with a yelp while Apollo appeared at Percy's side asking about a haiku.
"Be as it may. I am the god of guile in its many aspects: including deception, crafty words, persuasion, and the wiles of thieves and merchants. Your sister wears many masks, but she bares her heart for all to see the complete devotion that she has to you."
Hermês turned to look at Percy. "If she had to choose between you and allowing the world to burn, then the flames of hell would engulf the earth just so that she could have you."
Percy wanted to deny that. He truly did. There was no way possible for Ariadnê to care about him that much. There was no way possible for her to not have some resentment for him. But he couldn't lie to himself like that.
Ariadnê had made it clear over the years that as long as Percy was safe then everything else didn't matter. What she didn't like was people ignoring her or putting her down for him.
It was that thought that pulled him into another memory.
Ariadnê was surprisingly at the apartment for a change instead of stuck in her dorm room on campus.
She still did not understand why she was stuck at that academia when she was nowhere near catholic, but it was one of the few places that accepted her so she shrugged it off. The homework that she had been assigned to complete over the weekend was spread in front of her. A waste of time if anyone asked her.
She had very strong doubts that she would live to see her sixteenth birthday, so she didn't necessarily need any of the work in front of her.
Alas, she had become the unwilling devotee and champion of both Apollo and Hermes. One who presided over knowledge alongside the foundation of towns and the establishment of civil constitutions and the other who was the god of language, learning & crafty wiles that taught mankind their many tongues.
Damn them.
Her mother was simultaneously cleaning around the apartment while baking cookies in the kitchen. Percy had gotten caught up with helping Mrs. Liu and Ms. Heed with their groceries downstairs. Ariadnê also knew that the two had some weird rivalry going on so Percy was having to delicately handle the moods of the old ladies.
"Don't make that face, Ari," her mother scolds lightly, brushing the hair from her face. "School is just as important as your quests."
Yes, well Ariadnê would much more enjoy being out in the field, pounding monsters into dust than doing homework for dead roman emperors with sticks up their asses. And why was the Roman empire so important to the catholics anyway? It was all bullshit. She huffed, rolling her eyes at the paper in front of her. Who gave a fuck about Caguila? His name sounded like a pasta sauce brand.
"Yes, well, Grandfather won't stop his attempts to take over the world simply because I have science classes." She was fairly certain that he and Luke were using the time that they were in school to do more recruiting.
Sally shook her head as she scrubbed her kitchen counter. "It's always strange to hear you call the Titan Lord your grandfather."
Ariadnê shrugged. It was strange that he was her grandfather. "It's not much weirder that he's out to kill me," she muttered. "A bunch of empousa came after me today during study hall. One of them managed to actually bite me before I vanquished it. Thank Zeus for having Lord Apollo's essence because that was painful, and I have breakfast detention all next week for that."
"You should be more careful, Ariadnê," Sally frowned as she looked at her daughter. She shook her head. The girl was becoming so reckless the older she became. "One wrong move would be fatal, especially for your brother."
Sally wouldn't know what to do with herself if she lost either of her children. And Ariadnê couldn't even see that if something happened to her, then Percy would throw all caution to the wind to avenge her. She couldn't lose her babies.
Ariadnê mimicked her mother's expression as she placed her pencil down. She turned to look at her moth- at Sally as she fixed up another batch of blue peanut butter cookies. She inwardly scoffed as she already knew who those were for, and the excuses that would come if asked about her own treat like the demigoddess was not allergic to peanuts.
"And what of me," she asked, trying to not feel too hurt. It was always Percy, Percy, Percy with her. Did she truly not care? "Does it slip your mind that you have a daughter also because it seems like Percy is the only child you care about."
Sally shook her head, brows furrowed in confusion. Her own eyes welled with tears just a bit. "I couldn't forget you if I tried, Ari. You're my little princess." She stepped closer to where her daughter had moved to lean against the doorframe. The demigoddess' blue eyes were shadow yet piercing as if she was reading Sally's soul. There was a small outline of gold surrounding her irises.
Sally cupped her jaw, brushing her thumb over her cheek while trying not to feel hurt as her daughter tensed at her touch. "It's just your brother is in a delicate position right now with the prophecy and everything."
Ariadnê recoiled, stepping away. Something had flashed over her features too fast for Sally to understand, but she had the feeling that she just said something wrong. The feeling was intensified by the fact that she could hear the pipes rumbling under the sink. A scowl dropped onto her daughter's face; the blue hue of her eyes being almost swallowed by the gold ring and dark shadows.
"Funny. I could have sworn that the fact that Percy and I share a life string means that if I were to die then he would too. The prophecy means that both of us have to reach sixteen and you conveniently don't seem to remember which one of us is the eldest."
"Do not talk to me like that Ariadnê. I worry about you both. Fate just hasn't been kind to your brother, sending him on all these quests, and with your Father's broken oath. Your brother needs our support."
"No one supports him more than me, mother," she spat. "The thing is no one supports me for me. It is always Percy, Percy, Percy with you people. He's a big boy. He can take care of himself, so why can't I live for myself!"
"It's not like that, Ariadnê, and you know that."
The demigoddess rolled her eyes when Sally stated her first name. As if that was going to scare her. "Everyone loves and cares for you just the same."
Now that was a lie.
Ariadnê was nothing more than a background character in her own life. Her laugh was dark and bitter; tears pricking at her eyes that she desperately held back. She wouldn't cry in front of this woman.
"You don't have to lie to me, Sally." She spat the name with so much disgust that the woman flinched away. Ariadnê straightened, turning around calmly as she stacked her papers together. "Did you forget that I'm a human lie-detector now, hm? I know that you love Percy more." She turned to look back at her. "I've always known."
She knew from the moment that the woman always tried to keep Gabe's attention away from Percy while Ariadnê had to be the one to finally put a stop to his advances. She appreciated the time Sally had threatened him with a heated butcher knife, but that hadn't stopped that man and Ariadnê lived the rest of her year afraid of the moment he would get her. She never forgot those two horrifying moments in her childhood nor what happened during that faithful winter break when she was twelve that had nothing to do with the lightning bolt.
"Don't say that, Ari," Sally argued. "You're my daughter. I love you." Her eyes watered even more, and Ariadnê knew that if she pushed harder then the woman would cry.
She didn't care.
Not anymore.
Sally Jackson was a good mother. She just wasn't a mother to Ariadnê.
And- And she was tired of this same song and dance; of begging for attention for a woman that would never give her the love that she wanted and needed. It was exhausting. It was time to be selfish and live for herself for a change.
Ariadnê squared her shoulders; a mask of indifference appeared on her face as she looked the woman in the eyes. "You are not my mother, and I do not love you."
Lies. Lies.
She would always love this woman no matter how much she hurt her, but she wouldn't put up with any longer.
Sally Jackson flinched as if she were in shock, and Ariadnê wondered how could she be? The writing had been on the walls for years. This was a long time coming, but- it was also understandable.
Ariadnê did not exist in her mind if it weren't in reference to Percy. "I wish you would have given me up," she admitted. "Even the pain of Father-King Zeus' master bolt would have been more pleasant than growing up with you."
"Aria-"
The demigoddess swallowed down her reaction to that nickname. Funny how a simple name had been used by two people that have caused her nothing but pain in her life. She watched absently as an understanding seemingly overcame Sally. Maybe she had finally come to realize that she had never treated the twins as equals. Maybe she understood that for all that they were the Twin Swords... the Half-Divine Twins... for all that she used to claim that she cherished them just as much as Lady Leto loved and cherished the Twin Archers... she had never loved them in the same way.
Ariadnê turned away without another word; packing her essential belongings from her now former room... she called for Neigh so that she could leave. She didn't belong there anymore.
(And Ariadnê Khryseê Jackson simply became Ariadnê Khryseê. So it is Written, So it Shall be Done)
Percy was lying in his own cubicle when he came to. From the opening within the ceiling, the sun had dimmed as the chariot continued to the west. His sister's scrapbook laid on the pillow beside him and Hermês was nowhere to be seen.
He pulled the book into his lap, opening it and tracing his fingers over the pictures. There were a lot of pictures of the twins. There were some when they were babies to toddlers to children. He traced over those, feeling an ache in his chest at the way the light in her eyes began to dim as they grew. There was resignation on her face around the time that they became preteens as if she had always known her fate and accepted it.
And then the pictures changed when they found out their heritage. That spark in her eyes had come back; a look of wonder over her features. She looked more sure of herself; as if she were more comfortable in her skin.
He frowned playfully as he watched her clothing change to show off more of her features, and the way the people in the background traced their eyes over her. His sister was beautiful. He always knew that he was going to beat people away with a stick (and then she started dating a god that could kill him long before he knew from the other side of the world so clearly he needed a bigger stick).
There were a few pictures of her and Luke that he could see there were faint X marks over the boy's face. There were more with Lee where he could see tear tracks. There were a lot featuring Clarisse and Silena alongside Drew. Plenty of girls' night pictures, and he hurriedly turned the page when he noticed the x-rated pictures. He did not want to see his sister's boobs and the flushed look on her face.
The pictures changed to her and the Stolls, and once again, he wondered how she never realized Connor was in love with her. The utter devotion and love on his face as he looked at her in every picture was as if he were sitting in front of Aphrodítē once more. Travis loved her too, but it was easy to see that he looked at her in the same light that he looked at Connor. Someone that he had to protect because it was his self-proclaimed duty as their older brother.
The pictures then moved on to the gods, and he gasped in awe. She had written on the sides that it was incredibly hard to capture their everything, but the results were their mortal forms filtered just to show up on camera.
They were like looking at paintings made by the Seventh Cabin.
There wore erotic pictures of her and Hermês where their skin was decorated in love bites. Some of them were of her as she laid under him or he under her. There were some where she was wrapping some of his packages or of him showing off with his kerykeion with a bright smile.
There were pictures of Artemis teaching her how to hunt, and he completely understood how she had gotten so good at hog-tying people. There was a picture of her crying as Artemis taught her how to gut a fish, and another as she smiled with red eyes as the goddess showed her how to help a wounded deer.
They moved on to pictures of her and Aphrodítē as the goddess applied her makeup and did her hair. There were some where Ariadnê had simply cuddled into the goddess' side like a child and Aphroditê looked at her with so much motherly warmth.
Percy was a little surprised to see the pictures where Aphrodítē was absolutely demolishing her on a training ground, but the two were smiling as if they were having fun.
Árēs had come into some of the pictures where the two would spend time meditating or cleaning their weapons together. Árēs looked so young in the pictures and nothing like the god he had fought at twelve. There were some where he ruffled her hair.
As much as Percy tried to ignore it, he couldn't deny the way that his blood boiled with anger the longer he looked through the pictures. There were other gods from the Olympian Minor, some from the Khthonioi and Einalioi. He felt irritated with them all because it was nothing but more proof on how they attempted to steal his sister away from him.
(And they succeeded this time. Stealing her away to that thrice-damned prince. Percy was going to make him beg for mercy, and make sure he never received it.)
The next page made his heart ache.
He didn't understand how Ariadnê had been able to face Apóllōn and Connor if the pictures he were seeing were any indication. He could almost feel the tension between the two. There was a "replica" photo of their first meeting. Another of when he was teaching her how to control her powers. The way that they leaned into each other as he taught her how to shoot a bow. The two of them singing a duet. The god holding her close at her school dance. Him teaching her how to play the piano. There were a series of pictures of her falling asleep and cuddling into his side as the god blinked in shock before resting his arm around her. He was helping her with her homework. He was letting her feed his cattle. He held her as they grieved Lee together. A replica of what looked like after the Titan War where they clutched at each other as they kissed.
The pictures became a mixture of plain and erotic. There were some where they were just simply hugging to others where they clutched to each other in pleasure. Some where they fed each other food and others that he immediately turned from because he really did not want to see that.
What caught his attention the most was the portrait - not picture, but actually hand-painted picture-of the two holding each other oh so carefully with looks of wonder and love shared between their faces.
(Percy remembered that Chiron had said that Apollo had inherited Kronos' gold eyes just as Ariadnê inherited the Titan Lord's blue eyes.)
The pictures that came afterwards were single shots of her. Standing in the middle of the sea as she breathed in the salty air, running a brush over a pegasus, mud tracked onto her face as she cleaned a stable, carefully studying so that she could overcome her dyslexia, modeling clothes, brushing through her hair, sleeping, being caught off guard, sitting in the middle of storm-
The book slipped out of his hand as he fell into another memory.
To say that Ariadnê was at home in the eye of a storm would be an understatement, but it was true.
There was just something so peaceful about nature raging around her; destructive as it could be but knowing it could never hurt her. She welcomed the feel of her King's lightning as it brushed against her while inwardly wondering how something that most would consider painful feels like a hug to her. A part of her wanted to stand and dance alongside the cries of nature as it sung a song only a child of storms could hear.
Ariadnê blinked owlishly when her King... when her Uncle appeared before her.
Concern and wariness were the only ways to describe the look in his eyes as he peered at her. She must have made an amusing sight; drenched in her own element to hide away the tears that streamed down her face. She looked nothing like the insolent child that had muttered that he could shove the shaft of his master bolt up his ass to his throat for simply helping Hermês with his deliveries. War was upon them, and help was needed everywhere else he would have smite her where she stood.
Her eyes had slipped closed before he asked her: "What are you doing?" His own gaze tracing over her for any injuries. What other reason would she be sitting there if not for the water to heal her?
She opened her eyes, blinking slowly before focusing all her attention on him. It took more effort than he realized to not flinch at the way her blue eyes-so similar to his Father- froze him in place.
Her head tilted to the side, waves of black hair spilling around her like ink in the sea. "I am," her tongue darted out to lick her lips. "I am enjoying the storm, my liege."
Alarm appeared on his face, and she smiled inwardly. She knew that she was not the most respectful person to the gods, more than Percy for sure, but even her tongue was loose. She was trying, but she did not hold any promises.
"Why are you out here alone?"
She almost forgot that he was used to seeing her in the presence of her brother or his children. She shrugged as she turned her gaze to look upon the sky. Lightning flashed through Nyx and shined brightly alongside the katasterismoi.
"I need a moment to myself," she muttered, shoulders heavy with stress. It was almost as if the weight of the world had been placed on her shoulders and not her brother. "I needed to think about some things."
Mainly of how she was going to guess the Fates to take her life in exchange for Percy's survival. The Dioskouroi were able to survive with one half of the twins in the Underworld while the other still live above in mortal plane (well technically, the other half lived in the heavens, but the point remained).
She looked back at the god and she wondered what he thought. He no longer looked at her through the gaze of her kind-hearted Uncle, but through the eyes of her fair and just King. She could almost see how his fingers flexed as if to strike her down.
The questions that lingered in his eyes: Was this the beginning of the choice that led them to ruin? Were they all blinded by the power that her brother wields to not see that she was the child of the prophecy?
He was king.
The safety of his people came first, but could he hurt his brother and children so?
Ariadnê looked at him with eyes all too knowing, almost daring him to do so.
I do not wish to be here any longer, her eyes pleaded.
She wanted that reaction he seemed to realize. She wanted him to kill her.
He stepped away, and he took note of the sadness that flickered in her eyes at that.
She supposed she understood. She was much too loyal to her people to betray them. He knew that of course. He recalled the way that she found loopholes around the Ancient Laws so the gods and their offspring could interact freely. He was content with ignoring it as there were less deserters and no rules being broken. There were less minor gods staring at the Olympian Major with contempt in their eyes as their children died unknown and unloved. He wondered if the same should be applied to the Roman children.
"What is it that you have thought?"
The demigoddess sighed deeply, the kind that pulls exhaustion from the soul. "A lot of people do not actually care for me, mi'lord." A scowl drew upon her face that made him shift on his feet. He could recall plenty of times that Mother wore that same expression when speaking to him and his siblings. "They only desire the power that I wield. They want to consume me, control me, and make me feel small." Her voice had risen in volume before trailing off into a silent whisper. She wiped at her face before remembering that the rain was washing her tears away. "No one truly wants me. Everybody wants something. I have one foot in the grave and yet I've never experienced the love that Aphrodite claims is my due."
The King within him took a step back, as the panicked Uncle stepped forward in his place. She was already shaking her head, eyes slipping close once more.
"Do not mind me, Uncle." So she had noticed the switch. "I will leave soon as I have a duty to our family."
He crouched in front of her, taking her hands into his: "My niece, you understand that you are loved, correct?"
Her smile was bitter and pained as she opened her eyes to look at him, "So, they tell me."
Zeus brushed the hair from her forehead, making sure to look her in the eye to fully convey his words. "You may be a threat to Olympus' future, yes, but never doubt your place amongst our family. You are my niece. The niece of the King. You are a beloved friend to my children. I cherish you just as I do all others. Never doubt our affection, Ariadnê for you are strong; stronger than just a pretty face that stands back and allows others to walk over them."
Her smile was watery as she took in his words, and he smiled back at her carefully. He will need to reach out to his Brother to inform him of this revelation since the elder had chained himself to his realm.
"Remember your worth, Ariadnê. Your priorities are in check, you are very smart, independent, beautiful, and your heart is genuine. Never forget to appreciate yourself seeking the validation of others."
"Thank you, Uncle."
It was quiet between the two as she let his words settle into her. He was the one to break it as he looked at the storm around them. "Why do you find comfort in thunderstorms?"
Zeus watched as Ariadnê looked to the sky as the heavens cried and said: "Because even nature needs to scream sometimes."
Travis thinks that the last time he had been this angry was when it was announced that Luke had betrayed them.
He had stood in front of everyone in Cabin Eleven and felt two times his age at the faces that looked back at him. There had been disbelief and anger in faces that looked like his own and those that looked different. There had been consideration and approval.
But most of all, there had been tears.
He did his best, learning to be the brother that they needed. He paid more attention to them in sword training, blackmailing and trading favors like collecting cards to get them all the help he needed. He held them close to his heart, and felt every betrayal from those that switched sides like a spiked chain to the heart.
The other campers had looked at them differently as the revelation came to light. They treated them around warily. Their pranks stopped being seen as lighthearted fun to malicious attacks. He was losing sleep when one of Hypnos' children told him of Luke visiting their dreams. He had to mentally suit up and fight his brother's influence night after night to keep him away.
He had been at a loss.
They had been looking at him to lead them... to be their big brother, but he didn't know how to be an older brother to anyone that wasn't Connor. He didn't know how to be Luke.
It had taken him a while to realize that they didn't want him to be.
Travis would have lost his mind if it hadn't been for Ariadnê.
She had snuck away from her academia every weekend to visit camp and spent every federal holiday break with them.
But she had long since proved that she was different from the norm. While Percy had fallen in immediately with the status quo and seemed at home with how things were run, she turned her nose up at everything that she saw.
There had been no children of Zeus and obviously none of Hera; the campers looked to the children of Athena as leaders for guidance. The goddess was, after all, the favored child of Zeus. Ariadnê had waved the words away as she shared that title with Apollo and Artemis and Hermes. She had told them all with mockery in her voice that even Herakles was considered a favored child so what was the point of going by that.
When Annabeth had pointed out that it was because Athena had been born from Zeus, that was why she was considered the favorite.
She smiled spitefully in Annabeth's face, gesturing casually over to Mr. D and spoke of how Zeus had Athena retrieve Zagreus' heart so that he may be reborn and when Lady Semele died... Zeus sewed the babe into his thigh and birthed him also. Dionysus Twice-Born and Dionysus Insewn, she had shrugged.
That had been the end of that, but a moment that had really stuck with him was on labor day weekend when she just appeared in the middle of the campfire sitting with Silena and Drew as if she had been there the whole time. There had been an entire gap between the Eleventh Cabin and the others; mutters going around about traitors and the like.
Ariadnê had stood to her feet, garnering screams of shock from the others before plopping down beside Travis, cuddling into his side as he picked up the youngest child of their cabin. She made her alliance clear, and that was the end of that.
Things had gotten better between them and the campers and Travis felt like he could breathe again. Connor had managed to convince him to open up to him once more, and to take over some of the responsibilities to the cabin. He had become the second oldest after half a dozen of their claimed (and unclaimed) siblings ran off.
She had become someone he could depend on until he looked at her.
She had enough people depending on her. Ariadnê was making herself out to be some makeshift leader. Turning to the campers and making them acknowledge their recessive gifts. Reminding them that their parents had different domains and to step out of the boxes that they were forcing themselves in.
She shone as brightly as the sun whenever she smiled with a laugh that danced alongside the wind. She was as mysterious as the dark side of the moon.
If it hadn't been for Katie and Connor, Travis could have easily fell in love with her.
She was like the perfect picture that someone could stare at forever, and that may have been how he could see that she didn't need more people depending on her.
What she had needed was someone to depend on. She needed an anchor.
He switched gears immediately, turning into an older brother figure to her (which had the hilarious results of Connor pouting angrily whenever she kissed his cheek in thanks).
When the pressure of the Great Prophecy and the implied death of her and Percy became too much, he took the load off her shoulders. He threw out the idea of writing 'How to Survive the Monsters and the Gods Above Us.' Subtitled, 'So You're A Demigod Now'.
He gave the Tenth Cabin the idea of filing their powers. The campers had gone crazy in arts and crafts as they designed their books. The Tenth Cabin's had looked like a magazine whereas The Seventh Cabin's looked like a medical pamphlet.
Travis focused more attention onto the Eleventh Cabin, teaching them how to turn their pranks into traps. Increasing their speed that they only came second to their Father and Apollo. He made them threatening in an unassuming way. Argos had started to eye them warily, keeping his distance as he undoubtedly remembered what their Father had done when the giant stood in his way.
Ariadnê had caught on quickly, eyeing him knowingly. She didn't say anything, not even when he subtly pushed her towards Lee.
Lee who treated her as a child.
Lee whose death had been the official call to war for her.
She had woven a lock of his hair within her own and turned her attention to destroying anyone that stood in the way of her quest for revenge.
Travis would never tell Connor how happy he had felt about her affair with their Father. He, too, did his best to make sure that she never felt weighed down by her fate. He'd never tell Percy either of how he encouraged the relationships that she was building with the gods.
He loved being someone she could depend on. She brought so much light into their lives that was insulting that he could do nothing to help her.
It made sense that he was mad that he couldn't do that now.
And it wasn't his usual happy-go-lucky-you-messed-with-my siblings-so-i'm-going-to-prank-you-to-death anger. No, this was more of I'm-going-to-shove-my-sword-down-your-throat-that-it-comes-out-your-ass type of anger.
Travis wondered what was happening to her.
She was terrified of very little, and there was no mortal to walk the earth that could feel her with fear unless it was the death of the people she favored.
That didn't soothe the wrath that he felt. Even hiding away with Katie's babies in her garden did nothing to calm him.
Being unable to interfere was infuriating.
He hoped that she was doing okay.
WORD COUNT: 7,445
Words to Know:
katasterismoi - Placings Among the Stars, Constellations
Hermês Khthonios
Gods:
Dioskouros - Kastor and Polydeukes (Pollox) are twin half-brothers. Their mother was Leda, but they had different fathers; Kastor was the mortal son of Tundáreos, the king of Sparta, while Pollux was the divine son of Ζεύς. Brothers of Helénē. The gods of horsemen and gymnasia, patron gods of the Games, and protectors of sailors.
Mêlinoê - a frightful, underworld goddess who presided over propitiations offered to the ghosts of the dead. At night she wandered the earth with her train of ghosts, striking fear into the hearts of men. Her limbs were black on one side and white on the other, a manifestation of her dual chthonic and heavenly nature
