Chapter 54 - Peace

Percy sent his mother a cursory Iris Message to let her know he was fine once it was 9am in New York. He didn't want her to worry about him, so didn't exactly tell her where he was, only that he was fine and she shouldn't worry about him. Sally hadn't been happy, but there was little she could do with him already gone.

Despite Percy having his books that Kronos had subtly retrieved for him, when the Titan had offered to give Percy a tour around the Camp he leapt at the chance.

One thing that stood out to him was the surprising number of occupants. The Camp was bigger than Camp Half-Blood, approaching the expanse of Camp Jupiter and New Rome. Percy was surprised when he spotted Luke in the distance, walking alongside Alabastor Torrington. Percy glared in the latter's direction. Luke he didn't mind so much, he definitely knew now why he had turned to the Titans. But Alabastor had just repeatedly angered Percy.

"Glare any fiercer and you will turn him into seaweed," Kronos observed, not even glancing back towards Percy.

"I don't like him."

"I do not care," Kronos said mildly. "He is loyal. He lives here."

Percy picked out several other faces who'd formerly been Kronos' army and returned to Camp - and then disappeared again without a word. "So - demigods, how many are there here?"

"Several dozen," Kronos said. "But they do not make up the majority of the half-bloods here."

Percy's eyes furrowed slightly. "What?"

Kronos nodded across the Camp, towards where a hearth was blazing with Greek fire. "There," he said.

It was quite some distance, difficult for Percy to make out, but he noticed one kid was sitting in the flames. He raised an eyebrow. "Reminds me of Leo," he said.

Kronos chuckled. "I think that demigod would struggle with Greek fire." He glanced back towards the hearth. "A son of Hyperion," he said.

Percy gaped open-mouthed. "What would that be? A demititan?" He asked, baffled. "I've never met one before, didn't even know they existed."

Kronos nodded slightly. "You don't expect my brethren to not enjoy the time they have out of Tartarus, do you? Just because we have only recently made our presence known does not mean we have not been here for decades. Just Atlas alone bred four bastards of his own in the short few months he was loose from under the Sky, and the terrors now run loose around this Camp," Kronos elaborated. "When you have been stuck somewhere for centuries, it is easy to want the pretence of comfort from another."

Percy raised an eyebrow. "Pretence?" He echoed.

Kronos chuckled. "Mortals like their one-night stands," he said. Percy hoped Kronos hadn't joined the other Titans in their apparent fuckery. "I did not," Kronos affirmed.

"Could you maybe not read my mind?" Percy asked. "Boundaries."

"I didn't think we had any at this point," Kronos said, looking rather surprised.

Percy just shook his head slightly. "How can you pretend that none of it happened?" He demanded, stopping in his tracks. Kronos didn't seem too happy at his sudden question, but Percy pushed on. "You stabbed me and kidnapped me, repeatedly lied to me about everything, fucked Porphyrion of all creatures, sat back and-"

"He had a bigger cock than yours," Kronos interjected flatly.

"Fuck off," Percy said, barely pausing. "You sat back and let shit happen without interfering despite how much I asked for your help, and despite that – on top of all of it, you don't even seem to care in the slightest that the gods had to cut your stomach open because Porphyrion killed-"

"Enough," Kronos snapped sharply. His eyes flicked to the side briefly, but there was no one around them. Percy stood there, glaring at him with his arms crossed. Kronos narrowed his eyes at Percy. Percy didn't budge, and Kronos sighed. "Back to the house?" He suggested.

Percy's eyes narrowed further. "We're talking about it-"

"Yes, but not here where others can hear – since I told very, very few others about it," Kronos snapped.

Percy relented, nodding slightly. "Okay. Fine," he agreed. Kronos grunted and the two began to head back to the hut, Percy's mind swimming with everything he wanted to say – because how did Kronos just seem not to care? Percy couldn't understand it. Kronos opened the door and held it open for Percy, which kind of irritated him because he'd wanted to slam it behind him and be petty. From the sharp glint in Kronos' golden eyes, he was more than aware.

While the temperature of the Camp was warm despite the snow on the ground – which honestly confused Percy – the biggest house, clearly belonging to Kronos, was several degrees warmer. Percy sighed, running a hand through his hair when he settled onto the bed he'd woken up on.

Kronos shut the door, then dramatically flung himself down next to Percy. "Now you can speak," he said.

Percy glared. "Shouldn't we at least talk about eh fact that Porphyrion killed the… y'know? And you act like you've done nothing wrong and we weren't just fighting on opposite sides of a war for the second time in like – one year. You pretend you've done nothing wrong, like you didn't try to kill me and – what the fuck are we doing?" He asked sullenly.

Kronos took a deep breath, shutting his eyes. "Wrong and right are both matters of opinion; you say I was in the wrong, I say you were for intervening. My aim was to resurrect Gaea, since she was helping supply me with the strength I needed to bring myself back. Bringing her back was me paying me debt to her – and look around you, Perseus. Where is she now? Everywhere. All she wished was to be awake and one with her domain again, that much I could and would do for her."

Percy grit his teeth. "She's evil," he said curtly. The ground trembled and the house shook, but the minor earthquake subsided after a few seconds.

Kronos didn't seem fazed in the slightest. "That is a matter of opinion – Olympus opinion, actually. As for me trying to kill you – if I really wanted you dead, Perseus, you would be dead and we would not be having this conversation. Try not to forget that I can literally kill you with a snap of a finger if I actually wanted to."

Percy had to concede the point. "I feel like you're more likely to want to make a show out of killing someone." Kronos' lips twitched slightly, and Percy scowled at him. But at least Kronos probably hadn't wanted him dead, that was a plus. "Mortals don't take kindly to being stabbed in the stomachs."

"Neither do immortals," Kronos said curtly. "Which is why Porphyrion is not around anymore."

Percy stilled slightly, pressing his lips together. "How can you just – say that like it means nothing. That stab didn't just hurt you, Kronos. It killed a baby."

"Two, actually," Kronos said carelessly.

Percy gaped at him. "What? Two?" He demanded, sitting up straight. "Apollo didn't say-"

"Why would he?" Kronos asked, looking faintly amused. "He wouldn't feel the need to." Kronos sighed as he sat up. "Tell me, what was your plan?" He demanded.

Percy blinked. "What? My plan? What plan?"

"You've just made my point," Kronos dryly said. "You are seventeen, I am not. You haven't finished your mortal education." He raised an eyebrow at Percy. "You know full well that immortals never keep the children and always hand them to the mortals to raise – what would be your plan for raising two half-blooded children of mine?"

Percy paused. "I-" His mind worked to come up with an answer. "My mom would help-"

"Your mother would be utterly furious and would want to kill me," Kronos stated. "Not surprising, many do. But I assure you, any half-blooded children of mine would be a difficult challenge that you and your family would not be capable of dealing with without adequate preparation. My half-blood children seem to have made a tradition out of raising rebellions and insurrections against a ruling force, and that is not even mentioning the fact that one once permanently froze it's mother and starved to death because of it."

Percy blinked. "What? One of your kids started a rebellion…?"

"Spartacus. That's not important." Kronos looked deadly serious. "How would you have dealt with that?"

Percy hesitated, taken by surprise at Kronos claiming one of his kids had been Spartacus. "I don't know," he admitted. Okay, but he understood what Kronos was getting at. "You wouldn't have raised them," he said.

"Absolutely not," Kronos confirmed. "That is why I am not disappointed. You were and are not prepared for any children."

And Percy understood that. He sighed, pressing his lips together. "It still hurts," he said tiredly.

Kronos chuckled. "Perhaps you should finish your education first," he said dryly. "Maybe then one day it may be a possibility. If you have not been killed by that point."

Percy grimaced slightly. "What will you do if I'm killed?"

Kronos raised an eyebrow. "Celebrate my freedom," he said dryly.

"That's rude." Percy honestly wasn't sure if Kronos was joking or not.

Kronos just snickered and Percy wiped at his eyes. He didn't like it, but he knew Kronos was right. Percy was not in any way prepared to raise children – he was still far too young. Percy also doubted that any children born from Kronos would be welcome at Camp Half-Blood, so that ruled out Camp helping him.

Percy groaned, letting himself drop back against the bed. "This sucks," he mumbled.

Kronos just shrugged, looking entirely unapologetic. "It could have been worse," he said.

"So – you were helping us?" Percy asked tiredly.

Kronos shrugged. "More like playing both sides," he admitted to Percy. "Would I like to take down Olympus? Yes, very much, no matter the cost. But I decided that I disliked Porphyrion even more than I thought I did."

Percy snorted. "Make that two of us."

"You were just jealous."

Percy glared at Kronos, but the Titan had lazed back against the bed again and had a lazy smile on his face, eyes shut. "Maybe a little," Percy admitted. A lot. "It's difficult not to be."

"I will just wait until you die," Kronos said.

The demigod grunted. He wasn't sure if that was good or bad. "And if I don't?" He asked.

"You will have to be immortal for that."

Percy shrugged. "Doesn't sound so bad," he said slowly.

Kronos' smile slowly grew. "If you are looking for immortality, you shall have to go elsewhere."

"The Olympians refused. You're my only option."

"Ah, the rebound," Kronos said. "I do so enjoy being the last resort."

Percy shoved him in the arm, scowling. "That's not what I meant. It's an option though, right?"

"We shall see," Kronos said.

Percy stared up at the ceiling, letting out a heavy sigh. "I want to live out my life, but I don't – I want to stay with you too," Percy said slowly. "You can see the future, right? What's it like?"

Kronos paused briefly. "Changing," he said curtly. "Changing so often that checking now is pointless." The Titan didn't seem too concerned, so Percy at least figured that was a good thing. He wondered what it was like to be part Oracle, or whatever Kronos was. "How does it work?" He asked curiously.

"Prophecies, or the future?"

"Both?" Percy asked tentatively.

Kronos sighed. "Prophecies may come true through different ways," he slowly said. "They can be interpreted differently. The future… in truth is increasingly difficult." The Titan seemed almost baffled by this.

"What do you mean?" Percy's eyes furrowed slightly. "What – you're finding it more difficult to See things?"

"Yes," the Titan said, looking rather thoughtful. "My best guess is Mother is reclaiming part of Delphi for herself now that she has returned."

"The Oracle of Delphi?"

"Yes – naturally, as a son of Gaea, my ability to See through Time is linked to her Oracle."

Percy grinned. "So do you speak through poetry too?"

Kronos scoffed. "Hardly. No, I… suppose mortals would call it daydreaming, in a sense. I See through the immortal equivalent of daydreams."

The Titan had dropped mentions of his Sight before, but Percy had hardly paid them any attention. He figured it would be pretty cool to have an immortal mate – or boyfriend, if that's even what they were – who could see the future. "Sweet," Percy said lightly.

Kronos nodded his head slightly. "There are holes in my Sight that others have noted before though. It's not flawless, otherwise we would never have lost the war." Percy figured he was referring to the first one between gods and Titans, the Titanomachy. "Nevertheless, speaking of immortals and the past, and oracles won't help you to pass your exams," he drawled.

Percy groaned. "No," he pleaded, "I don't want to-"

"Don't want to is not an option," the Titan said. In an instant, he was up and across the room – and Percy's schoolwork was dropped onto the bed, aside from one book that Kronos was searching through. The Titan's face grew increasingly incredulous. "This is nonsense," he declared finally, dropping the book next to the others. "Mortals learn this?"

Percy laughed. Kronos was the smartest and most cunning individual Percy had ever met… but introduce him to mortal school and lessons, and the Titan would be confused by everything that mortals learnt. "Yeah, it sucks, doesn't?" Percy asked when he noted it was a physics book. He figured the Titan would have something to say about mortal assumptions of the world around them. "I'd say you're welcome to join me, but I think learning about what they think about the sun and moon will give you a stroke," he said flatly.

"Immortals don't get strokes," Kronos said. He waved a dismissive hand towards the books. "I have things that need to be done anyway," he said. "You enjoy your lies."

Percy cracked a smile. "Enjoy your… things."

The Titan vanished without another word, jumping out of the window. Percy watched as his wings shot out of his back and the Titan flew off. He didn't knew where Kronos was going or what he was doing, but Percy didn't care. There were still talks he needed to have with Kronos about lots of things that had happened. Percy found himself relaxing somewhat. Kronos, interesting, seemed to have pivoted towards genuinely at least being willing to be with Percy for longer. Percy figured that had something to do with what had gone down behind the scenes with Porphyrion, but what exactly he couldn't tell.

The omega seemed far happier however, a stiffness that had been present now gone. He looked a lot better too – clearly, being in Alaska was a good idea for him. The freedom afforded to Kronos here was something Percy could definitely support, especially if Kronos would keep bringing Percy there for the weekends.

For the first time in a year, Percy allowed himself to relax – it had been a very long time since there had been the resemblance of peace between him and Kronos. The two of them had time to slowly figure everything out now, and Percy knew they'd definitely have to talk about Kronos stabbing him and holding him prisoner at some point. But it wasn't like they needed to deal with everything immediately. As Percy opened the first of his school books, sitting cross-legged on the very comfortable bed, he thought that things were finally looking up for him. It had been a crap year, but now Percy had the whole of his future ahead of him to look forward to – and hopefully, all of it would be spent with Kronos.

Anddd the duo are back on speaking terms. Lots of things the two have to work out between them, but they're finally back on track. More seeds planted here for ToA etc - if anyone's been noticing, I've been dropping several hints that Kronos is part Oracle throughout this entire fic, so it shouldn't come as a surprise at this point. As for what problems that causes... well, I can say that Percy is going to be a lot more prominent in my version of ToA and that ripple will be making tsunamis!

Moonstone23: you're welcome!

Guest: Yeah, Kronos is making appearances again XD

Guest: Yeah, I think there was a delay for the reviews or smth. Kronos is always on thin ice, but Percy can't drown so it's fine XD. And all together now: FUCK ZEUS

Fandomgurl254: There wont be one for CbD anytime soon, sorry.

BlueFireRunes: I know right! Who would've guessed Peronos was actually something that worked?!