Three old women examined their orb, a powerful object that allowed them to observe events past, present, and future. The scene they were watching was displeasing to say the least. The young hero and his partner, falling into the pit. They were ancient beings used to the ways of life and death. However, this was going a little too far, allowing these young heroes to fall into the embodiment of punishment. Especially as they had already suffered through so much due to the machinations of the gods. How were they to save them from the pit? They may hold primordial energy, but even they cannot interfere directly and save them from the pit. But they were immortals capable of changing fate if they so wished. There were many events in the last few years that had left them unsatisfied, if only because the threats have left utter devastation in their wake. If Gaea were to awaken, no one would be safe. Even if the Seven of the prophecy were successful, the casualties would still be substantial, for both pantheons. Perhaps they could kill two birds with one stone.
The three sisters began to work. They pulled out a finished work, the tapestry that predicted the last Great Prophecy. They overlooked the masterful craftship and began to ponder how to improve it. After a moment, one of the sisters grabbed her scissors, and sheared off the work of art near the beginning. The others looked at her in astonishment, but realized her plan and began to work. They grabbed the Loom of Fate and began to rewrite history. They had only just begun, when the Loom began to fight them. The women were baffled, this had never happened to them before, the Loom wasn't supposed to work without their direction. They watched the Loom work and began to see that this time fate was out of their hands. Even they couldn't control the plan they had set in motion. They could only hope that the heroes they had chosen were up to the task of fixing the future and dealing with the threats that could destroy the world in their wrath.
Percy woke up feeling like he was still falling. He laid in his bed for a few minutes, trying to catch his breath. After he calmed down a little, Percy took a moment to regain his bearings. As he looked over his surroundings, he noticed that they were strangely familiar, yet utterly unrecognizable. This looked like his dorm at Yancy Academy. But he hadn't been here since he was twelve and figured out he was a demigod. He looked over at the other bed and saw Grover, but he wasn't the one he knew. He was obviously younger, exactly how he looked when he attended Yancy with him. But that was impossible, you can't just look younger. Then a horrible thought occurred to him. He rushed to the bathroom, turning to the mirror to confirm his suspicions. He was correct. He looked exactly as he looked when he was twelve.
What had happened? Was he in the past? What had happened to the others? Annabeth? The last thing he could remember was looking at her terrified face as he let go and fell into the pit. Tartarus. He knew what they had to do and was willing to make the sacrifice to ensure that the Doors of Death were closed. It was the only way to make sure that they had a fighting chance. With the Doors open, Gaea could resurrect monsters almost immediately, although Thanatos was trying his best to keep them dead for a little while. He knew the others could go without them and close the Doors in the mortal realm. But something had happened. He couldn't have just dreamed about the next five years of his life in one night. Then a thought occurred to him. He was in the past. The past where no one knew who he was or what he could do. But he knew things that they didn't, things that could change the course of both wars. Especially if he could convince just one of the gods that what he was saying was the truth. His father would back him, he knew that for sure.
His father. He hadn't thought about Poseidon in a while, partly because he had lost his memory of him, but also because he had been so busy trying to get to Rome. Here in the darkness of his dorm, he allowed himself to think of his father and wonder. He hadn't seen him since the end of the Titan War, on the beach of Camp Half-Blood. He didn't have all the facts, but from what the rest of the Seven had told him, he was incapacitated on Olympus. Torn between two forms with no end in sight. But he could stop everything, especially now that he knew how to heal the gods' split personalities and how to minimize the damage of the war. That also raised another problem. Camp Jupiter. The Romans had no idea that the Greeks existed, but both Lupa and Chiron had to know. The Twelfth Legion had also been part of the war, but they had a different approach by battling Mount Othrys. Thankfully, they now knew what had caused Leo to attack New Rome, and the Romans also had no memory of what had occurred, so their relationship could still be salvaged. But first he had to get his bearings.
Percy looked around his dorm, looking for something to tell him the precise date of where he had landed in time. Finding Grover's calendar on the wall, he struggled to read the date and plans for the day, but when he finally understood the writing, he suppressed the urge to groan. This was the day of the museum field trip. Mrs. Dodds, Alecto, would show him no mercy. Looking at the time, he realized that he had some time until Grover woke up to make some notes on the next few years. One of the first things he put down was to acquit himself of the theft of the master bolt. That was a little more pressing than anything else. Next on the list was convincing the council that Kronos was stirring and needed to be stopped before war could start. And convincing them that they needed the minor gods and that demigods needed to be claimed before they begin to lose hope and resent their parents for things they aren't completely responsible for. Most of the minor gods that don't claim their children do so because they have no cabin at camp. Not because they don't care about their children. It's a little disheartening how many gods still refuse to claim their children. But he knew he could change that. He could change everything.
The rest of the notebook was filled with missions for himself and the future he wanted to build with the time he had. Rescue Thalia from her tree. Get Bianca and Nico out of the Lotus Hotel earlier. Make sure Bianca goes nowhere near that junkyard. Save Zoë. Be nicer to Tyson. Save Luke from becoming the Titan Lord?
Percy stared at that last note, wondering if he should interfere in Luke's destiny. For all of Luke's faults, he died a hero. Did he want to invalidate Luke's sacrifice? And what about the Great Prophecy? If Luke doesn't end up being the hero of the prophecy, who will? And will they make the right choice? Would the Great Prophecy become null and void? Percy didn't know. He decided to be careful when interacting with Luke, in case his efforts were for nothing and he still decided to join Kronos.
Percy continued to fill out his notebook, oblivious to the time until an alarm went off in the room. He looked around and noticed Grover's clock going off and his friend's sleepy expression looking at him from the bed. "What are you doing? You're never up before the alarm, sometimes not even after it goes off." Grover's voice snapped Percy out of his daze, the familiar tones finally convincing the demigod that this was real and he was alright. Percy recovered enough to answer. "Nothing. Just couldn't sleep and decided to do some work." Percy winced a little at Grover's surprised expression, knowing that at twelve, homework had been the last thing he had wanted to do. Luckily, Grover decided it was too early to call him on his bullshit. He got up and grabbed some clothes to change into before heading to the bathroom. After the door closed, Percy released a breath and slumped in relief. He decided he should follow Grover's lead and changed into some clothes he assumed were clean before hiding his notebook, not wanting to chance someone happening upon it and find the incriminating evidence.
Once Grover finally got out of the bathroom and found Percy dressed and ready for school, he frowned. Percy had never, never been ready to go to class before him, and while it was a good sign for most people, Grover had come to know Percy pretty well this year, and the young demigod had no enthusiasm for school. So to find the twelve year old doing something so out of character set off alarms in the satyr's head.
Percy noticed his friends' attention on him and tried for nonchalance. He knew he was probably acting strange and his friend was noticing that, but he couldn't tell anyone. He couldn't risk his enemies knowing about his foreknowledge and stopping him from saving his friends. Kronos and even Gaea would do anything to stop him and he couldn't risk anyone else's life by sharing his secret. He noticed Grover shake his head and look away, going for his own things before they went to meet with the other students at the front of the school for the museum trip. Percy tried to feel relieved, but he knew this was just the beginning, especially since this was the day he faced his first monster, a Fury.
Luckily, nothing happened in front of the school with Mrs. Dodds or Chiron. Now that Percy was aware of his demigod heritage, he noticed that the two teachers had one eye on him at all times. He wondered if it had been like this the first time, and how clueless he must have been to have never noticed their scrutiny. As before, Chiron sat at the front of the bus because of his wheelchair, and Mrs. Dodds sat in the back to watch the students from a different angle. Yancy was a school for troubled youths after all. One of those youths being Nancy Bobofit, who once again decided that Grover was an easy target to throw pieces of her sandwich at him. Percy was surprised at his memory of the girl, especially since he hadn't given her a thought in years. He was once again tempted to deck her for bullying Grover, but calmed himself down by reminding himself that she was a child and he was technically years older than her. He didn't notice the strange look Grover gave him as he calmed himself down.
As they finally arrived at the museum and Chiron began leading the group through the hallways, Percy kept his attention on the exhibits they passed, taking note of the information Chiron gave them, trying to seem like an interested student that was there to learn. He tried to ignore the talking going on around him, but when it became too much for him, he turned to the group and said, "Can you be quiet?" The silence that reigned after his loud question caused him to tense and slump in embarrassment. I did it again, didn't I?, he thought to himself. "Mr. Jackson, did you have a comment?" Chiron asked. Percy was sure he was red in the face from his mortification. "No sir." Percy said. Chiron raised an eyebrow. "Then perhaps you can tell us what this picture represents?" He asked. Percy looked at the carving on the stele and remembered his answer. "That's Kronos eating his children. The story is that after he killed his father, Ouranos, he received a prophecy from his mother Gaea, that what he did to his father would be done to him by one of his offspring. So after his wife, Rhea, gave birth he swallowed his children one by one until Rhea tricked him into eating a rock to save her son Zeus. When Zeus grew up, he freed his brother's and sister's from their father's stomach and started a long war between the gods and the Titans, and the gods won." Percy's answer seemed to surprise the centaur, having not expected such a detailed answer from an ignorant demigod.
Nancy Bobfit decided to add her own comment. "Like we're ever going to use this in real life. Why do we need to know these old myths when they aren't real?" She said to her friend. Chiron, hearing her question, decided to have Percy answer it. "And why, Mr. Jackson, to answer Mrs. Bobofit's question, does this matter in real life?" Chiron asked. The laughs that erupted from the class made Nancy's face go red, a shade even brighter than her hair. He's asked me this before. And all of my experiences have prepared me to finally answer that question. "It matters because it teaches us valuable life lessons. They show us that the Greek gods, while immortal, have all the same faults and failures as we do. And we can learn from their actions so that we can live our human lives to the fullest." Chiron smiled at Percy's response, pleased that his charge was able to answer his question. "Correct, Mr. Jackson. Alright everyone, time for lunch. Mrs. Dodds, would you lead us outside?" As the class moved outside, Percy noticed that Grover stopped to talk to Chiron for a moment. He watched them for a moment, worried, but also came to the conclusion that a time traveling demigod would not be the first thought or even the last to come to their minds. So he continued on hoping he wouldn't have to lie too much to his friends and mentors.
"Chiron, we need to talk." Grover said, coming up to the disguised centaur. Chiron looked around them and noticed Percy watching them for a moment before heading out. The look in his eyes made him pause for a moment before he motioned for the satyr to continue. "It's Percy, sir. Something's different about him. Have you noticed it?" Chiron looked at the stele in thought. The young demigod had changed, but the reason for it was still eluding the old teacher. How did an unclaimed demigod who, until this morning, had smelled mostly of his stepfather with only a small portion of his power leaking through now have the scent of a powerful demigod? Percy Jackson was not only still ignorant of his heritage, but also unclaimed give off such power. "I have. But the reason for such a change still eludes me." Grover's face fell, obviously hoping the older centaur would have a better idea than him. "Well, it's not just his scent. It's also his actions. Not just his sudden ability to answer your questions today, but some things he did this morning. He was up before dawn and claimed to be doing homework. Then he finished getting ready before me. I know that these may seem like flimsy reasons to be concerned, but I'm also his roommate. I've had the year to learn his mannerisms and quirks, and the Percy I know would drag his feet in the mornings getting ready and would put off his homework until the last minute. I probably wouldn't have thought too much about it, but Percy was trying to be cool about it, like he was trying to throw me off his trail. But I don't know why." Chiron was still looking concerned. "I don't know, Grover. The only thing we can do is try to watch him the best we can and be prepared to help him when he needs it." Grover still looked concerned, but Chiron waved him off so they could join the others outside.
Grover broke off to join Percy for lunch, limping over and settling down next to him on the steps of the museum. They talked for a little bit, but Grover noticed that Percy paused several times before answering, like he was struggling to remember the people and events they were talking about. He stayed quiet about it and enjoyed his lunch, until they had an unpleasant encounter with Nancy Bobofit.
Percy had been having a good lunch until a half-eaten lunch was dumped into Grover's lap by a klepto redhead. While most of his memories of Yancy had faded with time, as evident with his and Grover's earlier conversation, Nancy Bobofit was someone annoying enough to be remembered after five years of never seeing her. "Oops." Nancy gave a wicked smile at the two, pleased with her little prank. Percy could feel the anger building in his chest and tried to control it. This was a tween girl and he was years older than her. He could get past her immature pranks without harming her with his powers. Suddenly he realized he may have to because Mrs. Dodds would only act with proof, and if he didn't provide it, she wouldn't attack him. As he tried to come up with a solution to his problem he spied the fountain nearby. I don't have to hurt her to make my point, he thought. So instead of bottling the anger, he unleashed it and focused his powers as the fountain simultaneously exploded water, soaking everyone in the vicinity with water. The shocked silence only lasted a few minutes before the other students began to complain about faulty pipes and how soaked they were going to be for the rest of the day. Percy surveyed his surroundings and found Chiron and Grover staring at him in wonder, while Mrs. Dodds was looking triumphant, thinking she had finally found the thief.
As museum officials came outside to survey the damage and placate the victims, Mrs. Dodds went up to Percy. "Come with me, Percy Jackson." Percy gave her a confused look, aware that this time he couldn't be blamed for anything. "Why? I didn't do anything." His response seemed to annoy her as a hand clamped onto his shoulder and began to pull him up the steps into the museum. His lack of ability to fight back annoyed him and he vowed to train until his body was back into shape. Grover's concerned face was the last thing he saw as Mrs. Dodds finally forced him inside.
Like before, Mrs. Dodds continued walking with him until they reached the Greek and Roman section. She let go of Percy and stalked to the frieze that depicted the gods, growling low in her throat. "You've been giving us problems, honey. Did you really think you would get away with it?" Percy did his best to act concerned when he replied, "Get away with what? I haven't done anything wrong." Thunder shook the room. "We're not fools, Percy Jackson. It was only a matter of time before we found out about you. Confess, and you will suffer less pain." Now that Percy knew everything, including what she was looking for, he could see a glimmer of excitement and anticipation beyond the anger of the theft. She was really looking forward to punishing him for his presumed crime against her lord. "Well?" She asked. He had taken too long answering her. "Ma'am, I don't…" She cut Percy off. "Your time is up." With those words she shed her human disguise, becoming a shriveled hag with bat wings, claws, and fangs ready to bite into my body. Percy glanced at the door, ready for Chiron to some through and was not disappointed when the man's wheelchair came bursting through the doors. "What ho, Percy!" He shouted, tossing Riptide toward the demigod. Mrs. Dodds lunged at Percy, who dodged and grabbed the sword as it transformed, falling into a defensive stance. This went unnoticed by both as Chiron immediately headed out and Mrs. Dodds was still recovering from her failed attack. As the Fury turned around for another attack, Percy got ready and swung as soon as the monster was close enough. As the yellow dust settled, Percy took a look at his surroundings. Riptide was back in pen form, and Chiron was nowhere to be found, so he was alone in this section of the museum. Percy sighed in relief as he survived his first monster all over again without breaking his cover. This was going to be a lot harder than he thought, trying to pretend to be a novice at things he'd mastered years ago. Not to mention he had to rebuild everything he'd had, his friendships, his family, even his reputation. While there were some things he was looking forward to doing differently, having to start again with Annabeth was not one of them. Especially considering he was now technically way older than her now, at least mentally. He resolved to think about that when he actually saw her again, not now when everything is still so new.
As he walked back to the entrance, he noticed the museum officials still scrambling to fix everything and assure the patrons that everything was under control, even as it began to rain. When he finally got back to the group, he noticed Nancy Bobofit glaring at him. "I don't know how you did this, but it's all your fault. I'm going to tell Mrs. Kerr when she gets back from talking to the administrators." Percy, still acting the part, blinked at her. "Who?" Nancy rolled her eyes at him. "Our teacher, duh." Percy gave her an owl-eyed stare and walked away. He walked over to Grover and asked, "Where's Mrs. Dodds?" The satyr paused and looked away before answering. "Who?" Percy hid a smirk. Thunder boomed overhead as Percy went searching for Chiron. He found him a little ways off, looking for the bus. He walked to the teacher. "Sir, where is Mrs. Dodds?" Chiron gave him a strange look. "Who?" Percy inserted a touch of hysteria into his voice when he said again. "Mrs. Dodds, the pre-algebra teacher." Chiron sat forward, looking concerned. "Percy, as far as I am aware there has never been a Mrs. Dodds at Yancy Academy. Are you feeling alright?" Percy tried to sound nonchalant when he answered, "Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. I was just seeing if you were paying attention. I'll see you in class. Bye." As Percy walked away, he never noticed Chiron's eyes on him, searching for the weapon he'd given the demigod.
After finally getting away from the trouble at the museum, Percy laid in his bed, wondering how he was going to fix everything. Especially since he was only one person, and he didn't know everything that went on during the war. He wasn't a year-round camper, and no one at Camp Jupiter would have given him any information, even if he hadn't left the camp within a few days of coming. Times like these really made him miss Annabeth, she'd have a plan ready to go in a few minutes. He felt a wave of sadness of being away from her again, right off an eight month hiatus. Percy slowly fell asleep, thinking of the past and the future he could now change.
Percy slowly adjusted to the darkness of the cave, trying to find out why he's already dreaming. A small glow around the corner caught his attention and he slowly walked toward it. As he got closer, he noticed three old women knitting, while a loom was in the corner of the cave, working by itself. Percy Jackson, the three women said at once. We have been expecting you. Now that Percy was closer, he could see the women clearly enough to recognize. The Fates. We are sure you have been wondering what has happened. We are here to give you some answers. Percy took a breath before answering. "Okay, then. Why am I here? Is this real? Can I really change everything?" The Fates were silent for a moment before answering. This is very real, hero. Despite what you may think, we are not cruel. We do not cause suffering to bring us pleasure. We simply obey the Ancient Laws and the way of Fate. Can you honestly tell us that you would be the man you are today without the loss and pain you have endured? No, because each loss you have endured shapes you, makes you want to do better, be better. And that is what made you the hero you are.
As for why you are here, you are one of our chosen heroes, here to prepare for the wars on the horizon. You can change everything, Percy Jackson. That is why we chose you. You must reduce the destruction that is to come, stop Kronos and Gaea from rising, and bring peace to the Olympian Pantheon. We have given you a companion, someone who will help you in any way they can. Percy was almost afraid to ask. "Annabeth?" The Fates seemed regretful for a moment before answering. No, young hero. The daughter of Athena is not our chosen. Nor should she be yours. You will not understand now, but one day you will. Until then, behold our chosen. With those words, Percy was immediately thrown out of the cave and traveling across land to Camp Jupiter. Percy came closer to the barracks and was only able to make out blonde hair and lightning blue eyes before he was thrown away, only to wake in his own body.
Jason woke up screaming. The last thing he had seen was his friends falling into Tartarus. Watching Percy and Annabeth's faces as they fell had been torture, even as he tried his best to fly down and catch them. His scream woke the other members of his cohort, who were shocked at the pained scream that left the Son of Jupiter. The campers looked at each other before approaching the demigod's bed, trying to calm him. A few moments passed before Jason regained his bearings and looked at the sea of faces that surrounded him. As he recognized his cohort's faces, he backed up and reached for his weapon, sure he was being captured and put on trial for his crimes against New Rome. But upon closer inspection, he saw worry in the eyes of his comrades. And something else. He saw the face of his first centurion, Marcus, a man that had retired to the city and passed his mantle on to Jason. But that was impossible. The man was in his late twenties, but looking at his face now, Jason could see the traces of youth that suggested a teenager. Jason looked beyond the people surrounding him and saw his barrack in the Fifth Cohort, not his bunk on the Argo II. His thoughts were interrupted when his not-centurion spoke to him.
"Jason? Are you alright? What happened?" Marcus asked. Jason looked at him in confusion, distressed by the turn of events. Jason's reply did nothing to reassure his fellow campers. "I have no idea."
A/N: I own nothing. Hi! This is a new story that I've been working on recently, and I am very excited to get going. Updates will be sporadic, but they will come. Full disclaimer; this is not a Percabeth story. This will be Jercy. I just wanted to be clear now as to why. Percy is now technically almost 17 in Mark of Athena, and Annabeth is 12. Not exactly a good age difference. Percy will always love Annabeth, but now that he's changing everything, she won't be the woman he's known and grown with. It's something that's not covered much in time travel stories unless they both do the traveling. Leave a review if you have any questions.