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When Percy had asked Leo what he was building he wasn't expecting the son of Hephaestus to finish his work this quickly. It seems luck was on their side as he finished his work without blowing anything or anyone up, or maybe that was just the touch of his elder brother teaching him things.
Leo looked up at Percy, holding his foot-long machine like a father would hold a child. He looked proud, both at himself and of the machine, he created, "I completed it."
Percy stood up from his place and walked slowly towards Leo, not trusting the son of Hephaestus' creation much. However great of an inventor Leo was, he had notoriously known as the 'bomber man,' in both camps, because of his tendencies to blow things up.
Piper too followed after Percy, soon joined by Daemon and Penelope, both children holding onto her hands as they dragged her with them, with how excited and fast they were walking.
Percy held the machine and looked at it carefully, wondering what it did. He tried shaking it but still couldn't solve the mystery. He looked at Leo and Charles Beckendorf, asking "What does it do?"
Leo grinned from ear to ear as he looked around the room, "Remember in Harry Potter they have those 'every flavored beans?' I was thinking of trying to recreate something like that, and with a little bit of craft and magic." He held up the machine high in the air, for the room to see as if it was a sacred relic. "I have created it."
The past gods looked confused as they all looked at each other, wondering what the future people were talking about. Meanwhile, the future people all gathered around Leo looking at his machine in marvel. Several thoughts and questions running inside their heads, but it was Reyna that voiced her question, "You read Harry Potter?" She raised an eyebrow at him, he wasn't the kind of person to sit still and read books. Even Percy was better than Leo in that regard, and that's saying something.
Leo looked at Reyna, baffled by her question, "Book? Ew no, I watched the movies."
Just as expected, Reyna looked mortified and in the past gods' section, Athena looked visibly pained and angered. Annabeth rolled her eyes, too tired of trying to explain the meaning of a good book to idiots, while Hazel covered her mouth with her hands to suppress her giggling, making Frank almost turn into a golden retriever as he heard the sound of her giggle.
As shown by Leo, Percy carefully pressed a button on the machine and a small bean popped out from a small hole. Taking it in his hands he sniffed it out first, but there was no noticeable odor in the bean, he ate the bean and moved it around his mouth to taste it and smiled a wide smile. "It's like bacon."
Percy's words were all the confirmation everyone else needed as they formed a line to taste the beans. Penelope biting half of her bean and finding it bitter thrust the remaining half at her twin's mouth. Daemon himself had gotten a nice cherry flavored one and gave his half to his twin. Piper got marshmallow, Rachel got carrots, Thalia got mud, and Reyna had gotten a bean that tasted like sea to her. She seemed way too enthusiastic about that one.
Everyone had gotten a bean for themselves and some were cursing Leo for creating the thing and some thanking him for it. The worst had gone to Travis and Connor, surprising both had drawn the same flavored beans and it was fart.
Annabeth laughed at the brothers' faces and tasted her own bean, after a while of thinking she mused out loud. "Hmm… Tastes like Stymphalian birds."
Heracles choked on his own breath as the past gods turned to Annabeth at once, seeing their faces, the queen of demigods replied, "You'll learn about it in the second book." Knowing they weren't going to get any better answers, the gods nodded and started taking their own beans as Leo went around the room passing them out.
The gods all got something normal or sweet, except Zeus, who as soon as he put the bean inside his mouth started coughing and gagging, "It tastes like vomit." His confession made several people inside the room laugh as the King of Gods continued to cough and splatter.
After everything had died down, Hermes opened the book and read out. WE GET ADVICE FROM A POODLE
We were pretty miserable that night.
"Good start," Triton muttered to himself, still in shock from the last chapter. One look at the sea deities and it was clear that they all felt the same.
"Don't worry brother," Percy said back to him, "This chapter doesn't have any dangerous actions in it."
Triton sighed in relief and leaned back against his seat.
We camped out in the woods, a hundred yards from the main road, in a marshy clearing that local kids had obviously been using for parties. The ground was littered with flattened soda cans and fast- food wrappers.
Pan growled as he heard that, it was strange to see the peaceful god emit such a fierce aura, but soon plants had started to erupt from the throne room's floor, vines of various kinds wrapped around his couch in a deadly grip. The gritting of the god's teeth could be heard clearly as he spoke, "What have the mortals done to my wild?"
Artemis, Dionysus, Demeter, and all the nature spirits inside and outside of the throne room shared the anger of the god of wild.
What was described was not how wild was supposed to be. The mortals had contaminated the domain of Pan. What were they thinking? Every god present in the room looked disgusted, no matter their different views or personalities. Everyone, even brutes the likes of Ares and Heracles loves the wild.
We'd taken some food and blankets from Aunty Em's, but we didn't dare light a fire to dry our damp clothes… We decided to sleep in shifts. I volunteered to take first watch.
"You really should've let others take first watch idiot," Annabeth chided him, remembering all the times that he had sacrificed sleeping because he wanted her or the others to rest properly. She also knew that most of it was because he didn't want to dream his morbid prophetic dreams.
"Sleep is overrated," Percy replied back to her yawning.
Hypnos who was sleeping on his own couch over at the minor gods' section, opened his eyes for a second. "What?" He asked, offended that someone might say something negative about his domain.
Thanatos who had been sitting beside his twin brother cuffed him behind his head and muttered, "Go back to sleep idiot, he was obviously joking." Hypnos mumbled something about overbearing brothers in his sleep.
Annabeth curled up on the blankets and was snoring as soon as her head hit the ground.
Annabeth immediately whirled around to glare at Percy, "I do not snore!" She was the head councilor of cabin 7, a daughter of Athena and now the Queen of demigods. She was more dignified than to snore in her sleep.
Percy shared an amused look with his wives from the future and his children. In unison they all shouted, "Yes you do!" Making the Queen of demigods blush golden and glare at her husband.
The rest of the room looked amused at the antics of the family.
Grover fluttered with his flying shoes to the lowest bough of a tree, put his back to the trunk, and stared at the night sky… …
He glared at me. "Only a human wouldn't be. Your species is clogging up the world so fast ... ah, never mind. It's useless to lecture a human. At the rate things are going, Hermes' breath hitched as he read the sentence ahead. Dark thoughts had already started clouding his thoughts as fear gripped his heart in a tight, unforgiving vice. He looked at Percy to see if it was correct what he was seeing, and Percy nodded. Taking a long breath, he read ahead. I'll never find Pan."
Pan gave out a nervous bleat, looking around the room, wondering if he had heard it wrong, or did his father read that. Seeing the shocked and sad looks from others, he knew he had heard it right. "Why must you have to find me?" He laughed nervously, "I would be at Olympus, or out in the wild." When no one from the future spoke, he started losing color from his face.
As he went paler he understood some things. The state of his domain, the pollution plaguing the wild he loved so much. Was it because of him? Was it because of his absence that the wild had suffered so much, or was it the other way around? Had the depletion of his domain affected him more severely than he'd ever thought possible?
He looked at his side to see tears falling from Grover's eyes as he looked down at the ground. Trying desperately to not let his idol see him in such a state. It was another thing that Pan deciphered now, Grover had addressed himself as the Lord of wild. Someone had to take up his mantle.
With a heavy and scared heart, ignoring the sad looks he was getting from most of the council. Especially from Artemis, Apollo and Dionysus. Pan turned towards his father and spoke, "Father read ahead."
Seeing Hermes' shaking hands, Hestia walked up from her hearth and rested a comforting hand on her nephew's shoulder. "I can read for you nephew." Hermes nodded and handed her the book.
"Pam? Like the cooking spray?" "Pan!" he cried indignantly. "P-A-N. The great god Pan! What do you think I want a searcher's license for?" … … Suddenly I was nostalgic for something I'd never known.
The gods sat up straighter, suddenly hopeful. This was Pan, they just knew it. They knew what it felt like to be in the presence of Pan and this was it.
Pan himself sat up straighter, this was the sign that he was listening. What happened to him? How lost must he be that his followers must go out and search for him?
"Tell me about the search," I said… "A sailor off the coast of Ephesos heard a mysterious voice crying out from the shore, 'Tell them that the great god Pan has died!'
"That must be a lie!" Hermes snapped finally. The messenger god's aura started to leak from his figure, making the immortals and mortals inside the room shiver.
"No, it isn't," Pan stated calmly, hiding his own nervousness and fear from the room. "I wouldn't lie about that, or hide if someone else claimed such a lie. I believe that message was from me, and it must be true."
"Then what about your presence that Percy just felt?" Hermes pleaded with his son, to tell him that it was a lie.
"I do not know father, there must be something ahead that explains it." Was the only thing he replied. Seeing as no one had anything to add, Hestia read ahead.
When humans heard the news, they believed it. They've been pillaging Pan's kingdom ever since. But for the satyrs, Pan was our lord and master… They search the earth, exploring all the wildest places, hoping to find where he is hidden, and wake him from his sleep."
Pan smiled as he heard that, however it was a sad smile. "Satyrs, my beloved foolish and loyal Satyrs." There were tears in the eyes of nearly everyone else as they heard the god. They all understood what had happened.
If the god really was fading due to the state of his realm. Then the belief of the satyrs' would keep him tied to the world. He would be in a never-ending state of grief and pain, and as the mortals continued to plunder his realm he would be forced to watch. Living his life as a memory, not dying but not really existing either.
He looked towards Grover and asked the question, "I fade, don't I?"
The sob that Grover was holding back finally broke free, as the Satyr pulled his knees up to his chest and cried in pain, in grief of losing someone he had looked towards all his life. Even Annabeth, Nico, Percy and Rachel who had been present during the god's last moment had teared up.
All of the gods look grief-stricken. Most of their domains overlapped with Pan, with him lost they would all be affected. Most of all, Pan was a dear friend to many, even Artemis who disliked anyone male was friends with the Satyr.
"Time is the most important councilor of all," Percy spoke as all heads turned to him, "As an immortal it is hard to escape the reality of time. You exist not beholden by time or the call of death, so it is easier to forget about it. Yet, times like these remind you that nothing can escape the clutch of time. Even immortals are beholden to the rules of Chronos."
"Kronos?" Someone asked.
"Not the Titan, the Primordial." Percy replied.
"And you want to be a searcher." "It's my life's dream," he said. "My father was a searcher. And my Uncle Ferdinand ... the statue you saw back there — " … …
"Not once in two thousand years?" "No." "And your dad? You have no idea what happened to him?" "None."
Something heavy settled in Pan's heart as he turned to look at Grover with a fearful look, "How many?" He didn't need to elaborate his question any further. It was clear to everyone what he meant.
Grover looked at Pan wondering if he should tell him or not, then he looked at Percy to see what he should do. Seeing Percy nod at him, he addressed Pan, "Thousands of Satyrs had left since you vanished to find you and wake you from your sleep. None of them ever came back."
Pan nodded, looking as composed as ever, but to his friends and family it was clear that he was close to his breaking point. To hear that he was going to fade in the future was enough toll on him for the day, but to hear that thousands of his brave followers went out, only to never return was the breaking point.
Still, he held on. Not wanting the others to see how he truly felt. Meanwhile, the Romans were looking at Grover with newfound appreciation. In the last two decades they had seen how much different Satyrs were to fawns and they had done their best to make sure that the fawns worked hard like the Satyrs too. But this was something else.
"But you still want to go," I said, amazed. "I mean, you really think you'll be the one to find Pan?" … "I don't know," he admitted. "But back at Medusa's, when you were searching her office? Annabeth was telling me — " "Oh, I forgot. Annabeth will have a plan all figured out."
Annabeth winced as she heard that, up until this point she hadn't been a good friend to Percy. She had been condescending, a know it all and downright rude to him. His reaction was genuine, anyone would feel bitter around it, but hearing it was hard. Especially since she knew how much he loved her now.
"Beth," Percy's voice broke her out of her thoughts, "Are you okay?"
Annabeth smiled, he was always so worried about those he loves. She leaned against his side and kissed him on the cheek, "Perfect."
There was a little noise of someone scuffling that had Hestia pause to look for the source of it. No one could see anyone moving or speaking, it was only when a small whimper escaped the person's mouth that the room zoned in on her. Catarina had escaped the hold of Rhea and was crawling towards her father. She was almost at Percy's foot when she looked up at her father and started bawling.
Most of the goddesses cooed at how cute it was to see the little godling crawling around the throne room. The way her innocent eyes were focused on her father, as if asking something.
Rachel scooped up the little godling and cradled her in her lap, "Are you hungry?"
Catarina huffed, like she was saying no and that it was a stupid question. Rachel merely rolled her eyes at that, Percy's children had too much of their father's sass for their own good, and it seemed that the 13 months old was also starting to show her blood.
Percy smiled as he looked at his youngest, he asked Thalia to move from his lap and sat down on the ground with his daughter. Catarina looked towards her dad expectantly and Percy could feel the impatience rolling off her. He understood her perfectly, she had started getting her teeth a few months back and wanted something to gnaw on.
He summoned his quindent and all the gods shivered from the weapon's presence. It had power that shouldn't be possible. Even the elder gods felt wary of the quindent, it was powerful enough to wipe Olympus off the face of earth. They didn't ever want to know what the weapon could do when used at its highest.
Percy's wives seemed immune to the aura of the quindent and merely smiled when Percy laid it across his lap in a calming manner. Their smile only grew wider as they saw little Catarina crawl towards the non-business end of the trident and start gnawing at it happily.
Everyone in the room smiled at that, none so brighter than a certain daughter of Atlas, who was looking at her daughter with stars in her eyes.
Poseidon's booming laugh made everyone tear their eyes away from the scene to look at the sea god, with great amusement the god explained, "Triton used to do that to my trident too when he was a child." His words were filled with great mirth, making Amphitrite smile and nod remembering it.
Hestia smiled at the tranquillity that had spread through the room and continued reading once again.
"Don't be so hard on her, Percy. She's had a tough life, but she's a good person. After all, she forgave me..." His voice faltered.
"What do you mean?" I asked. "Forgave you for what?" Suddenly, Grover seemed very interested in playing notes on his pipes.
"Grover," Annabeth called out to him softly, "There wasn't anything to forgive, you weren't at fault. You were given an impossible choice and you chose to honour your friend's last wish."
Thalia nodded agreeing with Annabeth, "It wasn't your fault goat-boy. If you don't get that inside your thick skull even now, I might just crack it open. Got it?" Her method of comforting was a little different than others, but the point got across.
Grover smiled at them, grateful to have such good friends, "Thank you." Nothing more needed to be said.
"Wait a minute," I said. "Your first keeper job was five years ago. Annabeth has been at camp five years. She wasn't ... I mean, your first assignment that went wrong — " … … …
"Maybe ... but Annabeth and I, we both got the feeling they weren't asking about a person. They said 'Where is it? 1 They seemed to be asking about an object."
It was like a puzzle piece had been found that Athena sat up straight. Her grey eyes flashing with many emotions and finally settling down on horror. She looked at the lord of the dead to see him paler than usual. So, he had figured it out earlier than her and was waiting for confirmation, she deduced.
"Your helm," She began, making the rest of the room zone in on her. "It's stolen along with the master bolt." It wasn't a question but a statement.
Hades nodded miserably, taking comfort in Persephone's hand massaging his shoulder. "I believe so too niece."
Everyone took a moment to process this piece of information. Two of the big three's symbols of power had been stolen. In wrong hands the weapons could cause unthinkable destruction. They shuddered thinking about it.
Zeus looked at his brother curiously and asked, "Why would you not tell the council about your symbol of power being stolen?" His mind worked overtime thinking of what Hades' plan must be.
Hades looked at his brother and raised an eyebrow, "Why would I tell the council about anything? What has the council ever done to help me or the underworld for me to come to them for any help? I hold no illusion that my problem would've been taken seriously by you or anyone else." He leaned forward in his seat, his eyes burning with black fire that threatened to swallow those looking at it, "Do you think of me so stupid as to trust you with something so severe? You cast me out of my own home due to your own paranoia and jealousy, do you think I would trust you to search for my helm like you were searching for yours? Or would you revel in the knowledge that I had lost power and have grown significantly weaker?"
The elder gods all looked at Hades in shock, sure they knew that their brother didn't trust them much, but they hadn't known that his distrust and dislike of them ran this deep. Even Demeter and Zeus looked ashamed to hear their brother's thoughts.
"Brother…" Zeus began only to be cut off by the lord of dead.
"Do not try to offer me your false words little brother. Remember that I am not naïve like many others you sway to your side. I know for a fact that you would not care about my problems and ignore my suffering if it served your purpose." Hades continued, leaving his siblings and family all stunned at how much truth the lord of dead's words held.
Rhea who had been listening to her son's plea with a broken heart couldn't hold back her sob. The sound of her sobbing reached the ears of her children and they all looked at their mother with pain, before they could say anything the Queen of the Titans looked at her children and spoke with a tired voice, "I have failed you all, I couldn't raise you all as I wanted but I at least thought that after the defeat of your father you could all be a family, as I always wanted. It seems that the action of some have broken that dream of mine." Then she looked at Zeus and Hera right in the eyes, making them known that her next words were aimed at them, "You disappoint me."
As expected, the King and Queen of gods visibly flinched. Hestia looked downtrodden and even Demeter was looking guilty. Poseidon looked towards his brother with pained eyes, he hadn't known that his brother held such feelings toward them.
Nico sighed, his father's feelings were well judged, but in the future all of this will change. He looked towards his father and spoke, "I want you to know father that in the future you have allies in the council. Percy, Thalia and Annabeth have always been there to support the underworld and the House of Hades."
The Lord of the dead offered the mentioned people from the future a smile. He had many questions for them, but knew that it wasn't the right time to ask. He was about to ask his sister to continue reading when Penelope spoke, "I will also help you granduncle."
"So will I," Daemon, Sophia and Danae added.
Hades looked shocked but soon it was replaced by a genuine smile as he looked towards the children, "Thank you godlings."
When everyone was silent, Ares looked around the room in interest, "Whoever it is, the strategy here is worth commending. This incident may invoke a war that will make all other wars look like children playing. The aftermath will be unthinkable." Looking at the weird and shocked looks from everyone, he frowned, "I am the God of War, Athena is not the only one who can know battle strategies."
Athena nodded agreeing with Ares, "The person must have an intimate knowledge of the big three to plan this out," Seeing the confused looks of others she explained, "Whomever it was planned the objects being stolen perfectly. They knew that Zeus would be getting more paranoid and start blaming his direct rival, Poseidon. While the barnacle beard will get defensive, he wouldn't allow a baseless and false accusation to stand against him. Hades who already holds a grudge against the Olympians and his siblings would blame Poseidon too, as it is only him whose weapon hasn't been stolen. Soon, there would be a three-way war between the skies, the seas and the underworld."
Artemis too joined in the conversation, a shocked and apprehensive look on her face, "The mastermind behind this plan has intimate knowledge about the big three, not many people are there who would know this."
The rest of the room contemplated about the seriousness of what was spoken, while the six siblings looked at each other, all of them fearful as they had an inkling of who it was. Their father, the Titan king Kronos.
"That doesn't make sense." "I know. But if we've misunderstood something about this quest, and we only have nine days to find the master bolt..." … …
"I know that, Percy. But are you sure that's the only reason?" "I'm not doing it to help my father. He doesn't care about me. I don't care about him."
Poseidon flinched at that, he knew that his son didn't feel like that anymore. He had said it so himself but still it hurt to hear his son say such words. He was the most passionate god about his children in the council other than Apollo, he had always hated Zeus for his restrictions. This reading was making him realize just how much he hated the rules his brother had set.
The rest of the room was wondering how a child can dismiss their father with such ease, a god as powerful as Poseidon. While those from the future shivered at how much Percy sounded like Luke. They didn't want to think what would happen if he had betrayed them like Luke.
Grover gazed down from his tree branch… …That's why you mailed Medusa's head to Olympus. You wanted him to notice what you'd done."
Percy huffed playfully at his friend, "Sometimes I hate how you can read my emotions."
Grover rolled his eyes, "It isn't always so easy. I have to really focus on our empathy link to feel what you were feeling at times."
Pan looked shocked at that and asked, "Why is that? I would think it was even easier to read his emotions if you two had an empathy link."
Grover nodded, "With any other person aside from Percy, it would be true. But he's a special case, his emotions aren't as stable as any other person's. It's like the mist, the sea in him makes it hard for me to figure out his emotions."
Poseidon nodded smiling, "The sea doesn't like to be restrained. Our emotions are like the ocean itself, always changing. You can never predict what the seas might bring out next."
"Yeah? Well maybe satyr emotions work differently than human emotions. Because you're wrong. I don't care what he thinks." … In my dreams, I stood in a dark cavern before a gaping pit.
"What is that?" Zeus shouted to no one in particular. He had an inkling of what the gaping pit was, but he didn't want to believe it. Poseidon had already slouched back on the couch he was sitting on and was shivering slightly. Amphitrite was holding her husband's hand in worry.
Hades looked at his nephew in warning, "You should not be there." To which Percy rolled his eyes and replied, "Gee, thanks Uncle, I didn't know that."
Gray mist creatures churned all around me, whispering rags of smoke that I somehow knew were the spirits of the dead. They tugged at my clothes, trying to pull me back, but I felt compelled to walk forward to the very edge of the chasm.
This time Triton had joined the King of Gods as he kept muttering something no one could hear, but the fear on his face was clear. He knew that the place described could only be Tartarus, and he wanted his brother to stay away from that place at all cost. The pit wasn't a place for a child of sea to be near, even a child of underworld should not be anywhere near that thing.
Some of the gods cast wary glances towards Percy, wondering why was he dreaming of such places and what it could mean. Meanwhile, Morpheus was looking at the future god with interest, this dream didn't sound natural and he wanted to know the real reason behind it.
Looking down made me dizzy. The pit yawned so wide and was so completely black, I knew it must be bottomless. Yet I had a feeling that something was trying to rise from the abyss, something huge and evil.
Those listening shivered just hearing about the pit. It was a place filled with evil and malice, a place created to drive those who encounter it insane.
The elder gods all shivered, they had only been there once to save the elder cyclops and the Hekatonkheires. They never wanted to even think of what they had seen, Tartarus is the place for punishment. They remembered the air being thick and stifling, the darkness so thick that it was impossible to see more than a few feet in front of you. The only sound was the moaning of the damned, who were forever in pain.
The little hero, an amused voice echoed far down in the darkness. Too weak, too young, but perhaps you will do.
A thick coil of dread had spread all around the room as Hestia read the last part stutteringly. The fear of her father present in her voice. The flames of the hearth had dropped low and not a single sound aside from the heavy breathing of the elder gods and Rhea could be heard.
The Queen of Titans was the one most affected, she had immediately realized who this person was that had appeared in her grandson's dream. She could recognize his words anywhere, if that wasn't enough, the throne room had chilled and she could feel his aura around her. She would know him anywhere, after all she was married to him at one point.
Long-forgotten fears that she had, surfaced once again. Still, she steeled herself and asked her daughter to continue.
The voice felt ancient — cold and heavy. It wrapped around me like sheets of lead. They have misled you, boy, it said. Barter with me. I will give you what you want.
No one said anything, they didn't need to. The god in front of them had already gone through all of it and they knew he didn't listen to the voice. Still, it was concerning at how much strength the Titan Lord had gained to try and influence a half-blood directly though dreams.
He had stirred from time to time before, but never had he gained consciousness enough to influence others. It was enough to strike fear in the gods' hearts.
A shimmering image hovered over the void: my mother… … Her eyes looked directly at me, pleading: Go! I tried to cry out, but my voice wouldn't work.
Percy closed his eyes to stop the barrage of emotions that were threatening to spill from his heart. Hearing about his mother being particularly hard to him now, when he had lost her permanently. Looking around the room he could see multiple people glaring at the book.
"That's just cruel," Aphrodite commented as she dabbed the corner of her eye with a handkerchief.
Rhea laughed a bitter laugh, "Yes, Cruel is just what I would use to describe him."
Cold laughter echoed from the chasm. An invisible force pulled me forward. It would drag me into the pit unless I stood firm. Help me rise, boy. The voice became hungrier. Bring me the bolt. Strike a blow against the treacherous gods!
The gods growled at that, but couldn't say anything to defend themselves. Their children didn't know them at all, Percy had shown them that by now. They knew nothing about their parents to know of their nature and personality.
The spirits of the dead whispered around me, No! Wake!
"Yes! Wake up!" Percy's friend and family all yelled at once.
The image of my mother began to fade. The thing in the pit tightened its unseen grip around me… …My eyes opened, and it was daylight. "Well," Annabeth said, "the zombie lives."
Poseidon jumped from his seat and looked around the room frantically, visibly shivering from the experience. It wasn't just the curse, but also the fear the elder gods had of their father. Hearing him speak directly in his head was too much for Poseidon. When he calmed down, he sat back on his couch and gripped his trident so tight his knuckles turned white.
Amphitrite, and his children all looked at their father in worry. They hadn't seen him this nervous in a long time, possibly ever. Seeing as the god of seas was neither going to say anything nor lose his grip on the trident, Amphitrite asked Hestia to start reading again.
I was trembling from the dream. I could still feel the grip of the chasm monster around my chest. "How long was I asleep?"
"Long enough for me to cook breakfast." Annabeth tossed me a bag of nacho-flavored corn chips from Aunty Em's snack bar.
Seeing as the room was still tense after reading about the evil voice from the pit, Penelope decided to lighten the mood, "Mom still cooks like that."
Percy laughed, knowing what his daughter was trying to do, "Thank the creator for Hestia, if it were up to Annabeth, we'd all starve or die of heart attack."
Annabeth turned towards her seaweed brain furiously, even though she was blushing from the roots of her hair to her neck, "Hey!" She hit his shoulder, "You are all gods, you can summon the food yourself and gods don't have heart attacks."
Daemon who was still in Annabeth's lap, patted her hand and whispered up to her, "I like your breakfast."
Annabeth nodded and kissed him atop his head. Artemis smiled at them from her seat, her son had started opening up to her but still he wasn't as comfortable with her as he was with his stepmothers. It would take a long time for him to be like that with her.
"And Grover went exploring. Look, he found a friend." My eyes had trouble focusing… … "I'm not saying hello to a pink poodle," I said. "Forget it."
"What did the poodle ever do to you Percy?" Piper asked, barely containing her amusement. It was funny seeing how goofy Percy was in the past, not much had changed between the decades. A few of the demigods laughed at her question and turned to Percy for an answer.
The King of Demigods rolled his eyes as he looked at his friends and Piper, "I don't think a sane person should be expected to wake up and say hello to a poodle. A pink one at that!"
The gods of all old were all curious, Pan turned to the group and asked, "What's a poodle?"
"A poodle is a breed of dog," Annabeth answered.
Pan and all the gods from the past grimaced, that wasn't a usual color for a dog. The mortals must have done something to the animal, they all thought.
"Percy," Annabeth said. "I said hello to the poodle. You say hello to the poodle." The poodle growled. I said hello to the poodle.
"HA!" Leo laughed out loudly, "So, she's been controlling your strings since the start eh Perce?"
The Stoll brothers, Chris, Nico all began to laugh at how instantly Percy's face had turned golden in embarrassment. Their laughing stopped instantly when he glared at them all. Behind him, all of Percy's wives were chuckling, even his children had all joined in to tease their father.
"Mom can still control dad like that," Daemon commented laughing, making Annabeth wrap her palm around his mouth. The boy was just like his father, not knowing when to stay silent. She thought while laughing herself.
Grover explained that he'd come across Gladiola in the woods and they'd struck up a conversation… … … "How does Gladiola know about the reward?" I asked.
"He read the signs," Grover said. "Duh." "Of course," I said. "Silly me."
"Duh Percy," Travis looked over at him with mock disappointment, "You didn't know that animals can read?"
Percy chuckled and replied, "I just don't think it's fair that demigods can't read because of dyslexia but animals can."
At his reason most of the room dissolved in hysterics.
"So we turn in Gladiola," Annabeth explained in her best strategy voice, "we get money, and we buy tickets to Los Angeles. Simple." … … …
"There's an Amtrak station half a mile that way. According to Gladiola, the westbound train leaves at noon."
Hestia sighed and closed the book, apart from the little tidbit about her father making a cameo, this was a rather peaceful chapter where the children weren't fighting for their survival. She hoped that the next chapter would be the same.
