Song Recommendation: "Yellow Love" by Citizen. A very relaxing song, despite the rather somber tone. It's wonderful. It's got this melancholy feeling that I find to be incredible. The way I see it, this song is about someone who isn't having a great time. They're down on their luck, or they're struggling with something, and this love is what's saving them. It's their one little ray of moonlight that's keeping them afloat, and if that doesn't describe Percy in this story, who knows? Percy's having a hard time, maybe not outright said as much in recent chapters, but he's not healed yet. But, Artemis is helping him along, gently guiding him and taking care of him. It might not always mean that she's there to stop him from falling, but she's there to pick him up with soft hands and gentle words. Anyway, let me know what you think.

"They did well," Percy grinned, "They seemed like they were having a good time."

"I imagine they were," Artemis said serenely as they bobbed up and down in the waves, "I'm sure you noticed how energetic they were."

Percy let out a small laugh, "Yeah no kidding. I had to jump through a fire to catch Atalanta."

"I saw," Artemis smiled at him, "You did not notice it, but a few of my hunters saw that and nearly gave up."

Percy laughed, "You're kidding."

"I am not," Artemis shook her head with a smile, "You put on quite the show."

"I do aim to entertain."

"And demoralize it would seem," Artemis joked, "Though, in reality, I imagine it will only inspire them to try harder."

"Why's that?"
"You inspire those around you," Artemis said simply, "It is hard not to want to do better when they see you."

"Huh," Percy's mouth twitched as he thought back on it. That only brought something else to mind, "So what was Thalia not telling me?"

Artemis smiled softly to herself, "In regards to when we first arrived?"

"Mhmm."
"I needed to discuss a rather important change with my hunters," Artemis said simply, "They took it surprisingly well."

"Oh that's good," Percy nodded easily, "I thought she was being weird."

"You noticed immediately."

"Yeah." Percy couldn't help but grin, "But I figured she'd tell me if it was anything important."

Artemis smiled, "She is a rather poor liar."

Percy agreed, "The worst."

Artemis laughed, "Does it not bother you?"

Percy floated along on his back, "Not really? Should it have?"

"I don't imagine many would like being kept in the dark," Artemis pointed out.

"Sure," Percy agreed, "But I feel like you're going to tell me eventually, so I'm not really worried about it."

Artemis's eyes flicked to him for a moment, "I imagine I will. Still though, do you not want to know?"

"You'll tell me when you're ready," Percy smiled, craning his neck to look at her, "That's all there is to it. I trust you."

Artemis smiled softly and the two sat in silence, enjoying the water and the stars. It was a long while before either of the two broke it, but the goddess eventually did, choosing to ask the man random questions.

"So between losing your eyesight, and being able to taste stuff," Artemis cocked her head in disbelief, "You'd choose never being able to see again."

"Yep," Percy confirmed, "Food is important."

"And your vision isn't?"

"Sight's overrated," Percy laughed.

"You wouldn't know what the color blue is," Artemis pointed out dryly. Percy gasped, seemingly not having considered that.

"That's a damn good point," he nodded slowly, "Plus I guess I wouldn't be able to drive."

"That's all it took?"

"Well yeah," Percy said, "I didn't consider that."

"You're an idiot."

"A lovable idiot," the son of the sea grinned, "I wouldn't be nearly as fun if I was normal."

"Or as much of a headache," Artemis rolled her eyes.

Percy's mouth twitched, "I'm pretty sure they go hand in hand."

"I am pretty sure that they do not."

"Well…" Percy stated before trailing off, "Yeah, I've got nothing. I thought I had somewhere to go with that but I didn't."

Artemis just nodded, eyes closed, "I see."

Percy, of course, couldn't sit still and naturally found a question burning its way through his mind, "Do you think all the gods like olive oil?"

"What?" Artemis's eyes cracked open so that she could stare at the man across from her, "Why could you possibly be thinking about that?"

"Oh you know," Percy shrugged, "Reasons."

"Why olive oil?"

"Well, the Greeks were really into olives, weren't they?" Percy splashed a bit of water onto his face, "Like to the point that they made regulations about it and stuff?"

Artemis stared at him for a moment, "The mortals were quite fond of it, yes."

"Yeah but what about the gods?"

"I do not imagine many gods have considered it outside of Athena and your father. I certainly haven't."
"Okay then what do you think of it?"

Artemis sighed in mock-exasperation, "It is fine as an ingredient? It is not something you go and drink."

"Hmm," Percy's mouth twitched again, "That's a good idea."
"What?"
"We should drink olive oil."

"We should not do that."

"Why not?"

"Why would we?"

"Cause it'll be fun."

Artemis shook her head, "That is all you then, Perseus."

"You're telling me you've never wanted to take a shot of olive oil or something after smelling it?" Percy asked, "It smells so good."

"That does not mean that I have ever wanted to drink it."

"I feel like we're missing out on that."

"We most certainly are not."

"Okay well you can be a stick in the mud. When we go inside, I'm trying it."

"You have fun with that," Artemis shook her head in amusement, "Are you that hungry to consider drinking oil?"

"Well I imagine it's pretty calorie efficient," Percy thought about it for a second, "Like a snack bar but easier since you can just drink it."

"That is stupid," Artemis groaned, "Stop being stupid."

"I think it's a great idea."

"I'm sure you do," Artemis rolled her eyes, "Of all the people I chose to become friends with, I had to do so with the one that wants to take shots of pure olive oil."

"Do we really choose our friends though?"

"What do you mean?" Artemis was thankful for the change of subject, even if Percy was rather cute when he was emphatic about something.

"Well think about it," Percy said, "I feel like we don't choose to become friends with someone. Like I didn't see you in a crowd and decide that we were going to be friends."

"No, but I imagine that some people do."

"Yeah maybe," Percy half-agreed, "But I feel like the vast majority of people don't. Like I'm sure most people choose to stay friends, but being friends is one of those things that I feel like just happens."

Artemis considered that, "That is a fair point. I admit that I have never gone out of my way to be friends with someone."

"I feel like it's one of those black and white things, right?"
"How so?"

"I feel like you can choose to be nice to someone who needs it right, but that doesn't make you friends," Percy tried thinking about it, "Like that girl at the shop. I was nice to her, but we aren't friends. And if we did become friends, I don't think it would be something that I chose."

"I see where you're coming from," Artemis nodded along, "But that doesn't necessarily make it black and white."

"I guess I mean it more so in the sense that you either are friends or you aren't," Percy said before tilting his head, "at least with your 'real' friends I guess. Some people are weird. But I feel like friendship isn't one of those things that can be forced."

"I agree that it cannot be forced," Artemis agreed, "But I think I disagree in some ways as well."

"How so?" Percy asked curiously.

"For one," Artemis started, "I think that for some people, friendships come naturally. Our friendship came naturally without much effort on either end. But I think for people who have a harder time, friendships are chosen. If you don't mind my using you as an example, I don't see you ever having had a particularly hard time making friends. People like you naturally, and things develop from there. But I think that there are those who don't have that ability to make friends easily."

Percy looked thoughtful for a second as the goddess continued, "For someone who is not as socially adept, so to speak, I imagine that making friends is a conscious decision. Some people, you in this case, do not go out actively determining who you could be friends with because it happens easily. That is opposed to someone who is more isolated, or introverted for example. They might have to force themselves to go out and look for people to become friends with. That may be by joining groups or it may simply be the action of going out in general. They might be more selective than you since it is a more conscious decision. In being specific, I think that it becomes something intentional as they're actively searching for specific things in people."

"I think I can agree with that," Percy paused, "But don't you think that those people are simply limiting who they'd be friends with?"

"In a sense," Artemis could certainly see where Percy was coming from, "But I think that you are looking at it in a very binary sense."

"How so?"

"Consider that some friendships develop more naturally, like ours, but certain relationships like yours and Zoe's took a lot more to do so. Despite your initial dislike of each other, you both chose to band together but you didn't necessarily get along. It took both of you being cordial, and then you both had to be cordial to become friends. Your initial interaction was purely circumstantial, but you both chose to invest time and effort into understanding one another."

"But did that make us friends, or was that something that would have happened regardless?"

"I think it is a bit of both, at least in your case. Again, you naturally make friends with ease," Artemis pointed out, "But for someone who isn't able to do so, it may be more of an active choice rather than a natural development."

"That's fair," Percy said easily, "I think your point about Zoe and I really nailed it home for me. At first, I didn't really agree but that made it a lot clearer."

"I imagine that a lot of it is a matter of semantics," Artemis replied, "But I do think it is more of a spectrum."

"Yeah," Percy chuckled before changing the subject a little, "Do you think we would have become friends if Thalia hadn't asked you to rescue me from my little situation?"

"I imagine so," Artemis smiled, "Like I said earlier, people like you. I am no exception."

"I feel like you're overstating that," Percy rubbed the back of his head.

"I disagree," Artemis countered, "People flock to you. Just look at my hunters."

"I guess that's fair," Percy conceded, "But it feels weird to say that."

"Are you afraid that you are being arrogant?"
"A little?" Percy laughed, "Like I can do cocky. I can definitely be prideful, but I feel like people always heap all these things on about me."

"And you think that if you agreed, it might come off the wrong way?"

"Yeah pretty much," Percy smiled, "Like I won't lie and say it doesn't make me feel good. It does. But sometimes I feel like people need to remember I'm just another guy."

"And I imagine that is one of the reasons we get along so well."

"What do you mean?"

The moon goddess smiled, "Very few people are willing to look past what others say about us. You, to most people, are a hero. And they put you on a pedestal for it, not really seeing who you are. It is much the same for me. My reputation precedes me in many cases, and equally in many cases, people see only that. They do not see me for who I am, rather what they have heard."

"Yeah," Percy sighed, "It's like they forget to treat us like people."

"Annoying, isn't it?"

"No kidding," Percy chuckled, "But we got lucky I guess."

"In what way?"

"We," Percy gestured between the two of them, "don't do that to each other. You might tease me about being some great hero or whatever, and I do the same for you as a goddess, but we're just us at the end of the day."

"True," Artemis smiled, "I do count myself lucky for that."

"It's nice," Percy leaned back so that he could float around, "I'm sure you feel the same way, but I feel like I have to appear the way people see me."

"It is a bit of a feed-back loop," Artemis agreed, "Eventually, after so much time, you do become that person."

"You sound like you've got experience with that," Percy said softly.

"A little," Artemis admitted, "I still struggle with it, if I am being honest."

"I get what you mean," Percy let the water push him a bit closer, "I'm here if you ever want to talk about it."

"I know," Artemis offered a small smile, but said nothing after that.

Percy bobbed up and down in the water for a moment before speaking up again, "What do you think they're going to say?"

Artemis turned to look at him curiously, "Who are 'they'?"

"Your hunters," Percy said easily.

"About?"

"Why we were gone for so long," Percy chuckled, "We've been gone for quite a while now."

"I have an idea of what they'll say," The goddess smiled, "But if it weighs on you that much, we can certainly go back."

"Mmm. No."

Artemis laughed, "Besides, who's to say we can't just come out of a tent in the morning and act like we were there the entire time?"

"Other than the fact that Thalia has a habit of barging in?" Percy pointed out, "Not much. And one tent?"

"I suppose that is a good point," Artemis did seem to consider this, "Perhaps it is worth the gamble."

"Nah," Percy chuckled, kicking his legs back so he was floating on his back, "Let's call it a 'tomorrow' problem."
"Oh?" Artemis laughed, "We're staying here for the night?"

"Maybe," Percy gave a half shrug, "Let's play it by ear."

"As we usually do."

"Exactly! If it works, why worry?"

"Were you not the one worrying?"

"Ah, no," Percy grinned at her, "No idea what you're talking about."

"Hmm," Artemis smiled, "Where should we head next?"

"On our trip?" Percy asked. Artemis nodded in confirmation, "I don't know about you, but I'm thinking we go somewhere a bit cooler."

"Agreed. I don't imagine you would mind if we headed north again?"

"Nope," Percy confirmed, "Not exactly eager to have the sun try to boil me for the next few days."

"Is there anywhere specific that you had in mind?"
Percy hummed for a second, drawing a mental map up in his head as he thought, "Maybe we could snake our way towards Indiana before setting off more westward."

"Indiana?"
"Mhhhmm," Percy nodded, "I know they've got some great roads in their state parks, and I remember Nico telling me about this cave over there with some cool stuff."

"How did he come across it?"

"He randomly stumbled out of a labyrinth exit in it and thought it was worth visiting again," Percy said, "Kinda been meaning to check on the labyrinth anyway since Hermes was telling me it's calmed down since it reformed."

"It has," Artemis confirmed, "But more monsters reside there now than they had in the past."

"Any idea why?"

"I do not send my hunters into the labyrinth," the moon goddess said easily, "and it is far safer for them, especially given how many cross country trips you started taking after the war."

Percy chuckled, "I'm not that much of a concern, am I?"

Artemis deadpanned at him, "You have beaten multiple gods and titans in single combat."

"Okay fair," Percy chuckled, "But it's not like they know I'm around."

"Disagree," Artemis shook her head, "It is not as if your scent magically disappeared. It is simply that no monster is stupid enough to challenge you. If monsters could smell my Lieutenant enough to chase her across the country when she was a child, imagine what your scent must be like now. You rival gods in terms of presence."

"Huh," Percy looked stumped for a second, "I never really considered that."

Artemis just shook her head in amusement, "That is about par for the course."

"Yeah can't really argue with that," Percy smiled, "I couldn't tell you how much dumb luck I've had."

"I could imagine," Artemis laughed, "Many of them are widely known stories at this point."

"Guess so," Percy shrugged, "Good thing is that most people don't know how many times I've fallen on my face trying random bullshit."

Artemis laughed, "It is hard to imagine you as the clumsy type."

"Really?" Percy cocked his head.

"I've hardly seen you take a misstep in any of the spars you've been in," Artemis pointed out, "And you are not against easy opponents either."

"That's fair," Percy smiled, "Pretty sure I'd never hear the end of it if I fell during a spar with Thalia."

"Certainly not," Artemis chuckled, "She would hold that over your head till you die."

"Which I'm suddenly remembering I can't really do," Percy sighed, "Oh well. Won't be a problem till it happens."

"I can push you over if it'd make you feel better?"

"In what way would that possibly make me feel better?"

Artemis shrugged, "Who's to say."

"I feel like that would make you feel better."

"Never," Artemis placed a hand on her chest in mock-abhorrence, "I couldn't possibly bring myself to hurt you."

Percy chuckled, "Right."

Artemis laughed, "As far as I am concerned, I take wonderful care of you."

Percy nodded in agreement, "True, true. I couldn't ask for better."

"Wonderful," Artemis didn't seem all too surprised, "I do try."

Percy chuckled before shifting gears, "I'm thinking that we should watch a movie later since we haven't done that in a while."

"Do you have something specific in mind?"

"No," Percy grinned, "but I figured it might be nice to just relax and eat snacks and watch a movie."

Artemis smiled, "I agree, so long as you choose what we watch."

"What?" Percy whined, "I was going to make you do that!"

Artemis pushed him lightly, causing him to float away, "I think it's only fair since you came up with the idea."

"Fine," Percy fake-grumbled, "I guess I can figure out what we watch."

"You don't sound so happy about that," Artemis pulled him back towards her while Percy let himself sink a little so that his mouth was under water. Artemis watched as he blew a few bubbles and refused to look at her, causing her to laugh, "Did I hurt your feelings, Perseus?"

Percy popped back up, continuing to pretend-pout, "Maybe."

Artemis smiled before tugging him towards her and running a hand through his hair. She cooed as she spoke, "Aww I'm sorry."

Percy looked away while also leaning into the goddess's touch instinctively. Naturally, he didn't see her smile as he did so, but he did drop the act after a moment, "You'd be a good mom."

Artemis, not expecting this, froze for a second before fighting down the flush of golden blood as best as she could as she considered the implications of him saying that, "What makes you say that?"

Percy turned back to look at her, "Plenty of reasons, but I just feel like you're the nurturing, loving type."

Artemis hummed for a moment before removing her hand from his hair, instead dropping it down to his shoulder, "You think so?"

Percy smiled at her, "Know so. Between all of our friends, you're definitely my choice for best parent. Gods know I couldn't handle kids."

"No?" Artemis cocked her head, "I think you would do well."

"If you say so," Percy shrugged, "I'm probably the last person I'd trust with a child."

"And somehow, you are at the top of my list," Artemis countered.

"Am I?"

The moon goddess nodded, "You may not have the pure knowledge of fatherhood, but you have all the important parts."

"How so?"

"You are caring, for one. And you are dependable beyond belief. I fully trust that you would do anything to take care of a child, especially given your morals."

Percy rubbed the back of his head awkwardly, "I feel like you're exaggerating."

"Perseus," Artemis stared at him, "I do not ask just anyone to train my hunters."

He paused for a second before sighing, "I know. I just feel embarrassed when I hear that."

"I know," Artemis smiled, "But that is certainly better than being boastful."

"Yeah I guess you're right," Percy nodded, "But it doesn't make it any easier either."

The moon goddess smiled at him, "But you are rather cute when you squirm."

Percy chuckled, "Glad to see one of us enjoys my torment."

"How could I not?" she reached up and pinched his cheek a little, "You are far too easy a target."

Percy hummed, closing his eyes, "I'm thinking that you'd make fun of me regardless of how difficult it is."

Artemis hummed as she let her hand drop once more, "What else are you thinking?"

"That it's movie time," Percy opened his eyes and grinned at her.

The Huntress chuckled, "Then let us go."

"After you, My Lady," Percy swept an arm out towards the shore, laughing as he did so.

"Eager to stay in the water as long as possible?"

"What is it that you like to say?" Percy asked rhetorically, "Among other things?"

"I imagine I have said that, yes."

"Then that's my answer."

Artemis tapped a finger against her arm, then began to make her way back towards the beach, only just barely stopping to snag Percy's arm and bring him along with her. He, of course, was quick to follow as the goddess hooked her arm around his, effectively dragging him along if he didn't keep pace. He nearly lagged behind at first, but he quickly managed to catch up and match the goddess's stride. Even after the many months they'd been friends, it was impressive to see how little the goddess disturbed the environment as she moved. Had she not had her arm wrapped around his, he likely wouldn't have known she was there.

It didn't take them too much longer to make it inside, with the two instantly snaking their way through the house towards the bathroom. Sure, Percy could have dried them both instantly, but as he'd put it, there was something more gratifying about doing it himself. And so, they found themselves making their way into his room. Percy grabbed two towels off the warming rack, bringing one to the goddess before starting to dry himself off. Artemis hummed happily as she felt the warm towel and the son of the sea found himself staring unwittingly. Thankfully, the goddess didn't say anything, and he quickly went back to drying himself off. A moment later and he was riffling through a few drawers to grab something to change into.

He tossed one of his favorite sweatshirts onto the bed behind him and went back to looking for a pair of sweats or some sort of lounge pants. It took him a minute before he did so, settling on a pair of thick, cotton pants with a little plaid pattern on them. Percy, satisfied with the clothes, grabbed the aforementioned item and turned on his heel to make his way back towards the bed where he'd left the sweatshirt. Interestingly, he found that it was not on the bed. Rather, Artemis was wearing it.

Again, he couldn't help but stare at the goddess who hardly seemed to notice, as she pulled her arms back through the sleeves to take off the swimwear underneath. Of course, given who he was staring at, he wasn't all that surprised when she started teasing him a little.

"Enjoying it?"

Percy fought back some blood, instead choosing to respond normally, "I was wondering where it'd gone."

"Was it not for me?" Artemis asked teasingly, setting her previous top down in a neat little pile on his bed.

"You need a pair of pants too?"

The goddess looked thoughtful, "I would not turn you down."

Percy grinned, tossing the goddess the pair in his hands, "Need anything else?"

The Huntress chuckled, "What more could I need?"

"Dunno?" Percy glanced away, "Pair of boxers or something?"

Again, Artemis looked thoughtful, "Are you offering?"

"If you'd like."

She nodded, giving him a small smile, "I would."

He felt his mouth twitch into a little smile as he once again dug around through his drawers, this time retrieving a pair of briefs for the goddess. As he was walking over, he did have a thought. Would they even fit the goddess? Sure he was fit, being muscled all over due to years of training, but Artemis was certainly shaplier than he was. He brushed off the thought, intending not to think about his best friend's body.

Naturally, as one does when they try to not think about something, he found himself almost exclusively thinking about it. He could feel the blood rushing to his face as he handed the pair of briefs to the goddess. And, unfortunately, the goddess was staring at him like she knew exactly what was going on his mind as she began laughing, looking away and hiding her wide smile behind her hand. Percy resigned himself to his fate, looking the goddess in the face as she turned back to look at him with a wide smile.

She tilted her head a little before pushing him a little, "Change. I'll meet you in the living room."

He nodded stupidly and complied.

Well that was fun. I'm hoping it was fun to read but who's to say. Anyway, sex scenes? It's been one of those things I'm not too sure about since I feel like it would be slightly disrespectful in a sense? At the same time, there are some things I want to do but they don't necessarily involve writing those types of scenes. That being said, if people want them, I'm willing to try my hand at them. Just let me know or something? Like I said earlier, just drop a 1 or 2 in a review or something so that way I don't have to read a lot of yeah make them fuck or no don't have them. 1 will be yes, 2 for no. I know I definitely played into a more sexual style but there's some stuff I'm trying to do with it, and it's not straight up about sex anyway. Anyway, on to fun stuff.
To sushiman57: Me either. It's been drafted, but I just need to get there. Hopefully, it'll turn out the way I want it to. To Popeye220: Ah thanks! That's been a strong point for me and I really do try to emphasize it. To Ishimaru Taiki: As always, great to hear from you. And thanks! I wanted to explore them all as one sort of unit and I like to think it worked out well. And that was one of my favorite lines since I've been there and it was just a ton of fun to script that scene. To TopSpartan216: Thanks! I do worry at times that it's too slow, but I think that taking the time to really build up their relationship beforehand is what helps this story. It makes them more human you know? To mastercheif1229: Thanks! That means the world to me. I tend to do that with stories that I love, so hearing that people do that with this one means the world to me. Thank you again! To Remvis: Thanks, I wanted to try my hand at something a little more involved while letting everyone fill in the gaps between. And the banter thing is a huge part for me since I try to model these interactions after ones that I've had or seen. Anyway, I can't wait to be able to explore their interactions in a way that's a bit more involved in both sides. I tried to mess around with that towards the end, but I'm not sure how it turned out. Thanks again! To Darkanaklusmos70: Well I've got it scripted already and the scene's been written but I've been struggling to get there since there are just things that I've been enjoying writing and I want that to be one of the bigger shifts in their relationship dynamic. Hard to say, but definitely after this arc. To kikinder: Yeah neither did I and then I ended up writing that in one of those little writing comas I go into. And that's fun! I like Johnny so it's great to hear that. Thanks again! To TomorrowCarpe Diem: Heh. Yeah. Can't wait for it. I messed around with it a little with Artemis dropping more overt hints, but it'll be a few chapters before it outright goes anywhere. To TakeYoCookie: Ah unlucky but those stories have a different level of quality to them so it's a bit different. And that's awesome. I love that whole scene but I'll listen to anything. Except country. Cause you know. Country. Anyway! Typos are the bane of my existence. Dyslexia is a bitch. Thanks though! Means a lot to me. Till next week! To Vladiz45: Yeah fr. I like FIR and I liked Escape the Fate when he was part of it, but he's kind of an asshole. Oh well though. Makes good music. To Dudududhehe: Thanks! Always good to hear from you! See you next week as per usual. To OkBoomer147: Ah thanks! It's been a ton of fun to explore different things with this story. I tried a bit of a different style towards the end and I hope it turned out well without overdoing it. To Icefire99: Thanks! New chapter is up, hope it satisfies! To Datarus Finnigun: Well it's a pleasure to have you. It's been a ton of fun to write and I love to hear that you're enjoying. To Aether27: Thanks! That's huge praise especially since I don't feel the same way about each chapter. Thank you! To Rollsroys1234: Ah thanks! Updates out, hope you enjoy! I tried a bit more of an on-the-nose approach at the end. To HellRaiderS: Thanks! Updates out. Love hearing from you and glad to hear you're enjoying still!
Anyway, let me know what you think. 1 or 2?