Well, I promised the wait wouldn't be too long, and I always deliver! Enjoy, guys!

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Eridanos: Don't worry, Percy won't be hurt for too long. I think ;)

? Pov

(hopefully you know who by now, it should be easy to guess the MC from the summary)

I woke up, my surroundings bleary, as I tried to recall what happened before I fell unconscious. I did fall unconscious, right? Ugh, now I can't even keep my facts straight. That really wasn't helping my aching head. I sat up slowly, my muscles burning from soreness for something I couldn't remember. There was a weight on my forehead, something I was unfamiliar with. I reached up to touch it, finding it smooth but… wet? Bandages. Soaked in blood. I couldn't remember why…

"Well done, Angel. You just survived a head injury. Worst one I've ever seen. And believe me when I say I've seen plenty."

That voice… so familiar. Where had I heard it from? Oh, wait. When I'm about to die. "Why in fucking Tartarus are you here?" I snarled, reaching for my sword. He dashed over, so fast I lost my breath, and grabbed my wrist, just above my pulse. "Oh no, Angel. I spent hours patching you up. I ain't having you rip through your bandages because you want to kill me." He warned. I snarled again and tried to break free, but damn did he have a death grip. "Oh shut up! I don't know why you're here or how you're alive, but you won't be much longer."

He tightened his death grip on me. God dammit, it hurts. "Don't be silly, Angel. I tricked death before, didn't I?" He smiled, his eyes twinkling mischievously. None of the murderous 'I'm going to kill you' look. How were his acting skills so good? He may have tricked us before, but I'm not falling for his deception. "Go away. I don't need your help. And don't call me Angel. You lost the right 7 years ago." His blue eyes lost the merriness and his smile drooped. I would've almost been sorry for him except he didn't look disheartened, he looked… annoyed. "You aren't in your right mind right now, Angel." He said, tracing a vein on my uncovered arm. My left arm was in a cast. How he got all this was beyond me. "Just leave me. I'll deal with this by myself. I don't need anyone. Certainly not a traitor like you, Castellan."

Luke Castellan stared at me with those beautiful glacier-blue eyes. They were once the highlight of every girl's day. Now they would probably make them freak out and run away, convinced they were seeing a ghost. It was true, he died. But from what I knew, the Fates never played the game straight. Always twists and turns. It was so cruel of them to make me meet him again. The first not to judge me. My first guy friend, my first crush. The first guy to betray me. The first one to try to kill me. Now he wasn't the only one. But he also turned out not what I expected. He saved me, for one. He saved me when everyone else left me. It was hard not to feel grateful. And now he frowned slightly at my emphasis. "Here I thought you'd be glad I wasn't dead. Instead, you aren't even shocked besides one question on why I'm alive." I tipped my head slightly and laughed mockingly. "Doesn't take a genius to know something was off. This just confirmed it. Why would the Fates come to take your body? You may have been influenced by Kronos, but others have been in that same position. You were just the one who got closest to letting him win. The Fates don't do something like that. Once you're dead, they don't care. That's dear ol' Fates to you. Unless you have a purpose to serve. That, my dear, is the only reason why the Fates would revive you. And don't bother with being reborn and keeping your memories shit." I warned when he opened his mouth. Called it. "Firstly, your age wouldn't add up. You still look exactly like before. Second, Nico said your soul wasn't in the Underworld. Kinda suspicious. But everyone became busy with Rachel becoming Oracle. Your situation was forgotten but most. But I never forgot. Then, I simply put two and two together, and voila! You get your solution. I did wonder what it would take to get you out of hiding though." His mouth tilted up on one side like he was trying to prevent from laughing. "I'm surprised people called you Seaweed Brain, sweetheart. But yes, what you said was correct."

I nearly went crazy hearing that stupid nickname. Instead, I turned away from Luke and calmed myself by controlling the water vapor in the air. My strength returned to me after Luke healed me. My powers now yearned to be free. "It doesn't help you with redemption by complimenting me, Luke. I'll be leaving soon." He got up, serious for once. "Then that would ruin all of the Fates' plans, Angel."

"Stop it!" I hissed, turning to him. Now that he was standing, he was so much taller. Like 6'6 or 6'7. I had to look up. Talk about embarrassing. I didn't recall him being so tall. Despite his height, it didn't seem like he aged one bit. Still the same as when he died. That aggravated me for reasons I was unsure of. "Don't call me Angel. Never say that name again. I'm not an Angel. And I'm certainly not your Angel." That name infuriated me, but only for my first reason. If we're comparing nicknames, calling me devil would be more accurate.

Luke stared down at me, contemplating. "After I took my final breath, I was in a state of blankness, surviving but not doing anything. You'd be surprised what that does to you. It felt like an eternity before I saw the Fates. They revived me and made me immortal. Just to watch over you. Back then, I didn't understand why. But now I know. And, for what it's worth, I'm sorry."

"Your apology doesn't make it better, Castellan." I glared down at the mattress I was lying on. It was comfy. Touching the fabric, I couldn't help but wonder why he brought me here. If he was going to kill me, I'd thought he did it already. Could he not want to kill me? He'd be a first. A smile broke the surface.

The realisation struck me. I was happy that he didn't want to kill me. I was happy that there was finally someone who still wanted me alive.

Don't cry. Don't cry. Don't cry. I kept chanting, wishing it would come true. But it didn't help. Tiny tears slip from the side of my eyes, blurring my vision. He looked panicked for a second, behind the curtains of tears, but he stayed as he was. I was like a dam, and the water trapped were my problems. When there are too many, and no one comes to fix me, they overwhelm me, and the dam breaks. Luke's arrival was the tipping point.

Said boy silently sat down next to me, wrapping his arms around me as my memories came to me. Years of running from them, from thinking of them, and they finally caught up at the worst time. In front of my enemy. But he didn't seem to care. And… I found I didn't anymore. I closed myself, too tired to fight against the memories like I did for so, so many weeks.

Flashback (a year after the Giant War)

"Percy!" Annabeth's screams made me gulp. I turned to Piper, who was confused about why my girlfriend was staring at me like she was contemplating how to kill me. "Sorry, Pipes! I swear, we'll finish this conversation soon. Right now, I have to run!" I bade her a quick farewell and took to the hills. Or something. Was it take to my heels? Gods, I wish I paid attention in english class. Annabeth was catching up, so I cheated by energizing myself with the water vapor in the surroundings. Annabeth's rather foul language had me laughing till I had a stitch.

Gods, that was so annoying. They came at the worst times. I had no time to deal with that, though. I ran through the camp, dodging the demigods deftly before they even knew what was going on. And reaching Thalia's tree, I quickly scaled it, then leaped from one tree to another, all while Annabeth followed me from the ground. I knew taking acrobatics classes was an effective way to benefit me. "Na pari i eychi, Persephone Jackson! I swear, if you weren't immortal, I would kill you brutally. Now I'll have to settle with sending your essence to Tartarus!" I faltered upon hearing that cursed name but immediately went back to jumping from one tree branch to another. Annabeth didn't understand that place, not like I did. If not, she wouldn't say that name so carelessly. But I wasn't going to tell her. I saved her innocence, or what was left of it, when I bargained with Gaia to willingly go to Tartarus if she saved Annabeth from falling, and she agreed. That was the only way to save Annabeth. After I came back, I only talked to Nico about it, wishing to save the others from worrying about me. No way was I going to waste all my efforts because I pranked her.

"Don't be mean, Annie." I fake pout, not missing a step. "Don't call me that!" She shot back.

"I'll call you whatever I want, Annie!" I sang out. But Annabeth didn't respond, and when I turned back, I realized she wasn't chasing me anymore. I raced back, landing softly on my feet. "Wise girl?" I whisper, placing my hand on her shoulder. She glanced at me, one hand on her lips, the other pointing at the clearing. There was evidence of a struggle. Branches were snapped off. Leaves were torn. Many patches of grass looked like they were trampled on. Hard. "Someone has been here." I said, stating the obvious.

"Most likely a fight. And I don't think it has ended yet." Annabeth said. "Temporary truce. Then we'll go back to killing you."

I shrugged. "Wouldn't you rather have a make-out session?" Annabeth blushed but sent me an annoyed look. "Seaweed brain." She muttered playfully. I smirked. "Owl head."

Annabeth rolled her eyes. It seemed like I was the only one who wanted to continue the banter. What? It was funny. "Come on." She commanded. "Whoever was fighting couldn't have gone far."

I think I spoke for both of us when I said: what if it was a demigod? It was possible. Such occasions have happened before. When a demigod tries to be the 'hero'. Basically, they are being chased by a monster. But sees camp first and tries to be all heroic and lead the monster away from the 'mortals'. Aka us. Those situations are usually when the satyrs die. Poor them. Grover is usually heartbroken when that happens.

Annabeth and I followed the trail of broken tree parts to see a young boy, maybe a year younger than us, being cornered by 3 empousai. They surrounded the poor boy, licking their fangs. The boy was cowering, his legs shaking but tried to look strong. I didn't see any gold dust. So how was it possible for them to create such a mess? The boy didn't have any weapons. He could've been easily overpowered ages ago. Something didn't add up. But now wasn't the time to think about it. I took out Riptide, the bronze metal attracting the monster's attention. "Heroesss of Olympusss." The middle one hissed. Usual empousai. Fiery hair. Oddly shaped legs. Cheerleading outfit. "Hey, little girl. Pick on someone your own size, eh? Why bother going after someone who's way outta your league?" I asked, waving Riptide around. She hissed, showing her annoying tongue. "You will pay for killing Gaia, demigod." Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Annabeth quickly grabbing the boy and knocking him unconscious. Usual drill. I distracted the monster, she knocked the victim so he wouldn't put up a fight or make noise to attract the monster. After they get to safety, I kill them quickly. Unless it's powerful monsters, then the strategy changes. I'm always the one distracting because of her Yankees hat's abilities to be better suited for her job and I tend to attract more attention. And because I'd rather get hurt than watch her get hurt.

The empousai hissed in unison and lunged at me. I met the middle one face on and Riptide cut neatly through her abdomen, then stepped aside to strike another one through her chest. She vanished in a painful hiss. The last one howled with rage. "As I said, go pick on someone your own size." I was bored, so I quickly squeezed the last one to death with water tendrils. By now, Annabeth would've brought the demigod to camp. I leisurely walked back, letting my adrenaline calm down. It wasn't even an even match. At least I didn't get any injuries. Annabeth would have yet another reason to kill me if I did.

Time skip in flashback

The boy turned out to be Andrius Locke, son of Poseidon. My brother. And I instantly disliked him. Even after his claiming, which I really wanted to smack Dad for, he tried to seduce me. Me! His half-sister! Ugh, that's, like, super disgusting, that's incest. Even Drew wouldn't do that! (You know, when Drew was talking with Jason in TLH)

Andrius didn't give a shit. Even when Annabeth was around, he shamelessly flirted with me. And after I rejected him for the 7th time that month, he finally seemed to give up. He went around hooking up with different women, never lasting more than a few hours. He didn't even resemble Poseidon. He had long almond-coloured hair, dazzling green eyes, and pale skin. But the green eyes weren't of ocean color lime mine were. More of, green grass. He couldn't control water from water sources, only those underground. Which made no fucking sense.

I wished he left me alone after I rejected him, and he did. However, there is this saying. The calm before the storm. How I wish I took heed of it. Two weeks later, I realized he had been spreading rumors about me. Horrible things. Like how I was siding with the Titans. And how I was sabotaging the camp. Puh-lease. I didn't believe that would work. But it did! Nearly half the camp was on his side after a week. Then four-fifths in a month. It only took 2 months for him to turn everyone against me. Even the Roman Camp was in a titzy. I had no idea if they believed him or not. I didn't have time to figure it out.

My only friends were those I was close with. Even Nico and Thalia had turned. Nico because Andrius said I said he didn't belong at camp. Thalia because I apparently broke her bow. As if! I knew how important it was to her. The only ones I could trust that were my friends were Annabeth, of course. Chiron, but as a teacher, he had to be fair and just to everyone. Clarisse, Leo, and Piper. Chris was neutral because he didn't want any drama. Well too late.

Well, give Andrius 2 more months. And they were against me as well. Leo hated me, blaming me for Jason's death after he found me with his newest invention, something to find Calypso again. Andrius had broken it and I walked in on it. When I tried to clean it, Leo found me. Piper sided with Leo, especially when he showed her evidence. I knew Annabeth was feeling distant, but I didn't care. My fatal flaw was shattering me. From being able to trust everyone, I couldn't even trust Annabeth now because of my paranoia. But what I thought was paranoia was actually instinct because two days later, I found Andrius and her kissing. His hands on both sides of her as they kissed near an olive tree with her back pressed against its trunk.

"Percy. I—'' Annabeth scrambled away from Andrius and tried to get to me, but I made a shield of water around me, blocking off any contact. She couldn't approach, not if she wanted to be cut off from oxygen.

"I wish it would hurt, Annabeth. But I always knew something like that would happen. That you would give in to your flaw to date him. And it hurts now because I was expecting it. Well, we're done. Goodbye, Wise girl." I threw down the necklace I had, the newest accessory. It was a pendant of me and Annabeth on my birthday, both of us covered in blue icing smiling widely.

Annabeth scrambled to grab it, and I took the chance to run from there, Andrius's mocking laughter ringing in my ear.

Time skip

(she's running from camp after being notified that Zeus is demanding for her head. It's been about 2 years since she left.)

I carried myself through the forests, running from the Hunters of Artemis. They had always hated me for rejecting the Hunt and then insulting their ways. Not Artemis, though. We have always had a sort of sisterly bond ever since I took away her burden of the sky. She blessed me but understood didn't wish to be a huntress and live forever, so she made me an honorary one. The hunters didn't care though. Since they screamed bloody murder while chasing me with my dearest cousin leading them.

I weaved through the trees, hoping to shrug them off, but no such luck. Our speed and endurance were equal since we've both been blessed by Artemis. The difference is that they want to kill me. I don't.

"Come back here!" Thalia screeched, flinging her spear at me. I ducked low and cast another wall of water to block the arrows. "Stop hiding behind your little magic. Afraid we'll slaughter you if you can't hide?" Another hunter taunted. It hurts because… I think it was Reyna. "Like how you hide behind Lady Artemis?" I couldn't help but retort. That just enraged them. They attacked me with renewed strength and I got more close calls with the arrows. I've been running for hours now. And I could feel my strength depleting. Why wasn't there a water source to vapor travel when you desperately need one? Ugh!

I called for the water vapor in the air to carry me high and form a hurricane to distract them. And I for one loved their enraged screams as their bows were stolen from them.

I went even higher. Later, did I realized I was mocking Thalia, daring her to meet me at the same height.

I then channeled all my strength into vapor traveling. It would be impossible for me to continue running after this but I had no choice. Just as my body was pummeling down as I fully turned water vapor, Thalia's spear hit square on my forehead, making me almost lose focus, but hung on to the last few threads in the nick of time. I groaned in pain as the spear pierced through skin and bone but somehow found the strength to continue and disappear. Landing in a forest somewhere in the world.

Flashback over

When I came to, Luke was shaking my shoulders gently. "Woah there, Angel. I personally don't recommend you falling for me so soon." He smirked like he made a smart joke. I frowned, still dazed at the intense flashback. I never had one so powerful. Perhaps because this was the first time in many months that I actually stayed in one place for over a few hours.

"Luke?" He hummed. "Shut the fuck up." He made a sputtering sound as I got up on shaking legs and went out of the cave we were in. From what I could see, we were still in a forest, but I wasn't sure where.

"Amazon forest. We're still where you fainted." Luke murmured, coming from behind me. I frowned in annoyance. Didn't he get what I said?

Boys.

"Go away, Luke." I muttered, woozy from the wound. Where was the river when you needed it?

He smirked again. "Nope." I get why Annabeth would've fallen for him and how I always found him charming. I get why every time I saw him, my heart skipped a beat and my brain couldn't function properly. I get why before he died—every time we were alone—I would fall into the temptation of kissing him. "Just- just go away. My problems. Not yours." I shooed him off. Luke grabbed my arm. "This isn't about me, is it?" Since when did he become so empathic?

It must've shown on my face because he gently laughed. "Knew it. Care to share why you're like this? And why did I find you half dying?"

I was tempted to not say anything, but I thought he deserved to know why after saving my life. "One word. Super creepy half-brother who ruined my life by turning everyone against me after I refused to date him. Now everyone's out to kill me because he also has the majority of the gods on his side." He blinked, trying to process what I just said. "That is definitely more than one word." All the better to distract you with. "I know right?"

"That doesn't divert this conversation though, Angel."

I shrugged. Oh well. "Worth a shot."

"I'm still stumped on the dating part though. I mean, even Drew wouldn't do that! That's Deity level of disgustingness. That's incest. You sure this creep is your half brother?" At least I wasn't the only one who thought so. Although Artemis also agreed with me…

"Unfortunately." I slouched lower, folding my arms. Then immediately let go because I forgot about my cast. I don't even remember it was injured.

"Poseidon's son." He muttered staring off into the sky.

We stewed in silence as he processed everything. "By the way, Luke. I have to ask, why?"

This confused him. Staring down at me, he repeated the last word. Reminds me of Echo, the nymph Hazel and Leo met.

"Why did the Fates bring you back to life? For what cause?" Luke licked his lips, contemplating. "They didn't tell me much. Only that, I'm crucial in something in the far future. That I would have a companion, a betrayed soul. She would aid me when I am in trouble. And I in turn will bring out of her shell. And we both will have to make a decision. One that could either heal or destroy Earth for good."

I snorted. "At least you got a somewhat clearer answer than our usual prophecies."

"I know," he agreed. "Betrayed soul? I just met her. And now, you're stuck with me."

Did I hate that my future will be stuck with a guy who tried to kill me like a gazillion times but was the only guy who made me feel normal? Maybe. Was I still going to do it? Yes.

"Fine. But prepare yourself for some intense hate and a very hard life. After all, you were the first to betray me." The first one I loved with my entire being.

To his credit, Luke didn't flinch. Instead, he nodded solemnly. "I had 4 years to prepare myself, Angel. I'm more than prepared."

"No preparation can compare to real life experience." I said.

"Perhaps. We shall see then." Luke challenged.

"What now, Blondie?" I asked Luke. "First, we'll find a water source and heal you. Then, we'll improvise. The Fates never told me any specifics. So, we'll see."

"That is the worst plan ever. And I'm the master of bad plans." I joked.

"I know. But before you, there was another master of bad plans, wasn't there? Who else do you think that was? I had to have gotten my scar for some reason." Luke joked lightly. Yet under that lightness, I could hear the hidden layer of pain. I recalled what he said. I was in a state of blankness, surviving but not doing anything. You'd be surprised what that does to you. It felt like an eternity before I saw the Fates. To be stuck alone with only your mistakes and memories of your time enslaved to someone who manipulated and controlled you for years to keep you company… that was a torture even Hades could not have came up with.

He was trying to heal from his past. I have to stop running as well.

"Whatever, Blondie. First rule. No calling me Angel." I pointed a warning finger at him. He took it and pressed a kiss to the tip of it, making my heart jittery. "Ah, ah, ah. We need an Angel for our little duo, don't we?" He smirked. "I'll grab some stuff. Then we'll go find you a river."

It was after he left did I realize he had subtly called himself the devil. This conversation does not end here.