Authors note: Btw I won't be doing this often because I find them to be annoying while reading. Just wanted to give you guys a heads up this is my first fanfic so I don't know what the fuck I'm doing. I also apologize for my poor grammar and structure. I'm really terrible when it comes to the specifics of writing so bear with me. I'm going to try and get better with time. Once again I apologize in advance. Authors Note 10/11/24: It's more of a rewrite, but here's at least something...sorry for the wait.
Blankets
Sally
I set Percy down in his sea-green bassinet. His green eyes rimmed red from crying. My breast aching from his feeding. "Kid already has a death grip," I chuckle, trying to soothe the dull ache. Those gorgeous eyes slowly close as he gives the smallest of yawns, and I hope to the gods, well, one god specifically. Morpheus will take over from here, giving me some time to myself. I look upon his tiny body, still shocked and blessed to know he is mine and was born from love. Unlike some demigods. Not just a late-night tryst to cure the boredom of immortality. Looking upon my blessing, I think of his father. The memories of him and I on the beach in Montauk make me mournful of the past and sorrowful of what could have been. I remember the first time I saw him, Poseidon.
I was by the shore, the Atlantic calm in the afternoon sun. The sun was angled just right to where I could see the kaleidoscope of greens and blue mixed with gray within the water. The ocean waves licked the bottom of my feet, the warm sand underneath me bringing me warmth. The white caps of the waves mesmerized me. The sound of the waves crashing back to land comforted me. Just as it always has. The ocean always felt like an escape. That escape made me think about my writing, a story about a girl lost at sea. Her only hope is to find sanctuary. Only if I knew what fate had in store for me; as my story developed, someone sat beside me on my right.
They were different from what I knew. My mother always said I had a third eye. Able to pick up on people and their emotions. Sometimes, with this third eye, it'd feel like a curse. I'd seen dastardly things when I was a child. I had seen a man with one giant eye staring at my classmate with malice. When I was only 6, the man terrified me and made me frightened for my classmates. When I told my teacher, she only shushed me but kept a wary eye on the man. Pulled back from my melancholy memories. I focused on the stranger who sat beside me. They were powerful. Quite honestly the most powerful aura I've ever felt. It terrified me to an extent. The scent of the sea seemed to have been amplified by the stranger's presence.
"Who are you?" I ask the stranger, my eyes still set upon the calming water.
A deep baritone chuckle ran out.
I weave my hands through the fine sand, anxiously awaiting the man's response. "Can't a stranger ask why a woman like yourself is alone? Why not all beautiful things can be lost at sea," he says. His voice still holding that deep baritone laced with humor. I finally turn towards the stranger. What I see leaves me in awe. The man was maybe 25, his long, tanned legs stretched before him. His arms supported him as he leaned on the sand leisurely. His stance and fitted green shirt exemplified his muscular arms. After gawking at his body, I could only breathe a small gasp as I looked at his face. He had stubble growing along his hardened jawline. His eyes were that of the sea, which made me gasp.
His eyes were like the same endless shades of green and blue. The exact shades I found so comforting within the waves. His hair was jet black and tousled, contrasting beautifully with his eyes. His olive complexion and weathered full lips made me have butterflies.
"Can I ask why you're alone? You know the sea can't protect all beautiful things," he said humorously, his eyes twinkling.
I lowered my eyes as a blush appeared on my cheeks. Butterflies, more akin to hummingbirds, started in my stomach. "I didn't realize a stranger would sit next to me and continue to flirt with me in my solitude," I said, teasing him. The man let out a low chuckle. "Why did you think I was flirting? I could just be making conversation. And about your solitude, everyone needs company sometimes." His teasing voice matched my own.
"I can handle myself, and I was thinking," I say, eyes looking out to the sea. The butterflies are still sporadically flying. His hand touches my face, gently moving it back towards him. His hand felt hardened and weathered. "Now, how can I look at those striking blue eyes if they're looking ahead?" He says, his eyes earnest and smile now even more charming. "If someone touches my face, I'd like to know their name. No matter how handsome or powerful they may be," I say challengingly, my blue eyes darkening critically at him. The gorgeous man throws his head back in a full-hearted laugh. "I was right then in my assumption," he says with humor still riddled in his voice. "My name is Poseidon, darling".
I was pulled from my memories with panic as I heard harsh Knocking at the front door. I paused, my mind flying a mile a minute. I didn't have many friends, and the ones I did wouldn't be here at this hour. Checking the antique clock on my nightstand showed midnight exactly. "Not anyone I know." As the seconds passed by and my anxiety heightened, the knocking now seemed desperate. No longer was it strong, yelling for me; it was now almost pitiful. I get up slowly from the mattress and look once more at Percy. His eyes and mind are still under Morpheus' realm.
"Thank God," I mumble to myself.
I grab the celestial bronze dagger his father gifted me from the nightstand. Thankfully, he gifted it to me, knowing the often ill fate that befalls his children. The blade's sharp edge gives a golden glow in the dark room. The leather handle comforts me as I stand up from the bed and brace myself for what might come. I hear a voice as I cross the bedroom door and make my way through our small living room. "Please," it says, continuing the pitiful knocking. The voice sounded feminine. I got to the door, the blade still gripped in my hand.
My heart is pounding, and before I can even look through the peephole, I stumble back from the powerful aura I felt. I close my eyes and try to focus on this one, which is by far the most powerful I have ever felt. Not even Poseidon could have matched this. He felt weak compared to this almost all-consuming feeling. Knowing I had no choice. I open the door blade at the ready. I already know if it were to even give the slightest indication to fight, I'd be dead, but I would still try. For Percy, I'd always try. Finally opening up my eyes and opening the door fully, I look at the source of my anxiety.
It was a woman. A gorgeous one at that. Her face is a dark olive tone with wide, full lips, and her face is angular and regal. Her eyes were frightening. I only saw darkness and an endless abyss. Her hair matched that exact shade of endlessness. Given the lack of reflection, the hair looked as if it consumed the light coming from the hallway. "It probably is consuming it," I thought to myself. Her inky black waves went down to her lower back, Blanketing a small mound.
Her stance was one of nervousness and apprehension as she tightened her arms around the mound. She stared at me. Her wide lips pulled into a frown as she opened her mouth.
"You are Sally Jackson, are you not?" she said, her voice regal.
"Yes, I am. Who might you be?" I ask tensely. My body was riddled with fear and anxiety as I clutched the blade in my hand. Fear not only for my son but primal fear from the power before me.
"My, Miss Jackson, I believe we both know the consequences of saying Names," she says with a slight smirk.
Knowing it won't do anything, I try to slam the heavy apartment door, the fear now taking control. The woman only lifts a sculpted thick eyebrow at my attempt.
"Sally, we have matters we need to discuss, and I, quite frankly, don't have too much time. With an addition to our conversation coming shortly, I fear we'll have even less," she says exasperatedly.
I furrow my eyebrows in confusion at her words. Before I could question her, a flashing light entered my living room and the smell of the sea with it. I know that scent, like my own, Poseidon, has arrived. He walks behind me, his footsteps silent, but his presence all feeling as he stands beside me in the doorway. I widen my eyes in shock at what's in his hand, the trident, his symbol of power. I have only seen this once before, and he only showed it to me after my insistent questions about the weapon. His grip on the trident was tight, his knuckles white, and his body tense as he looked at the woman.
"What are you doing here? You're kind has not walked among mortals in millenniums. Why know and why her?" He said, his voice and body coiled like springs, ready to be let go.
"Why calm down now, child. You must respect your elders. Did you not learn that over the millenniums?" she says.
"If my memories recall, most of my elders have not earned or demanded respect," Poseidon says with a growl, his trident glowing, green mist starting to swirl around it.
At this, the woman's eyes flashed dangerously.
"Ease your weapon, young one, or I may not know what even the fates have in store for you," she says, her eyes staring at the trident until Poseidon loosened his grip and the green mist disappeared.
"Now Sally, before we were so rudely interrupted by our addition, I have a proposition for you. This is my first one, quite frankly, to a mortal made from desperation." She said as her hair moved away from the mound on its own. Unveiling a sleeping baby already, the similarities to its mother are uncanny. Both share olive skin, obsidian-colored hair, and the exact shape of lips. The baby must have been no older than Percy, maybe 3 months old. It slept soundly, unaware of the situation before it.
Poseidon looked upon the baby in astonishment. "How could I have not sensed the child? It shouldn't have even been born."
Icy prickles danced along my skin as dread started to creep upon me. The already lamely lit hallway is now completely void of light. The woman's hair began to twitch as her face contorted into anger.
"Watch your words, sea mongrel, for the same thing could be said about your son," she sneered.
My back straightened as she mentioned Percy."You dare mention my son within the same breath as this abomination?! You should be as tartarous as we speak, but instead, you mothered a demigod. You're lucky I don't call upon the council right now and force you back into the pit." He spat.
Power in its purest form rushes at us. Memories of me being trapped under the ocean current as a child were comparable to this. This power was ancient, and angered by his words. I could feel my blood boiling from the exposure to this. I take steps back to avoid her ire. Her hair was no longer twitching but now spiraling around her as her eyes glowed. Black mist encased her as she stared at Posidon in anger. His trident, now glowing, as well as the green mist, came back stronger, his hand gripping the trident. Seeing the possible outcome already, I try to diffuse the conversation.
Now behind him, I lay my hand on my lover's shoulder. "Please, stop, both of you. This isn't helping anybody, and you came for me, didn't you?" I ask her. Her arms were still clutching the baby. She removes her gaze from him and looks back at me. She shifts her shoulders as I feel her power recede and the black mist disappear along with the tridents." Now, can we please get back to the topic at hand?" I ask now, feeling comfortable enough to stand beside him in the doorway. Her eyes dart between Poseidon and me. "I see why you chose her," the woman said. She slowly sighed as she continued, "Sally is right. We need to get to the topic at hand. My offer is one of desperation. Sally, I need you to raise my daughter." you could hear a pin drop from the silence after her proclamation.
Then, a roaring storm hounded outside. No longer was it a calming night sky. Now lightning crackled in the sky as thunder roared outside. The wind and rain howled against the building as Posidon's rage grew to astronomical sights. "Poseidon, please, before we start a damn war and the king of Olympus himself becomes aware of your son, please hear me out," mentioning Percy seemed to be the only thing to slightly calm him. The storm now may be reduced to a tropical storm compared to the hurricane before. She sighed exasperatedly and furrowed her brows in annoyance.
"Poseidon, this child was born from love." She said, her eyes still holding their annoyance but earnest. My lover let out a low chuckle in disbelief. His hand was still laced around his weapon of power.
She glares at him once more, then looks down upon her baby. "Probably to calm down," I think to myself. I use the same tactic with Percy under challenging situations. Her eyes softened as she gazed upon the baby, Her wide lips pulling into a smile as she continued to stare at the child. She looks back up at us.
"No matter your thoughts or opinions, child, I am telling the truth," she said, sighing before continuing. "The child's father was the light to my darkness. He made me sane, Poseidon," she said, her eyes misty as she looked at him. The sound of loss and grief riddled her voice as she continued. "For thousands of years, I've been merely a shell of myself. My mind is too fractured to make sense of the world or myself. When I first felt my mind fragmenting, I hoped a marriage might help. Oh, what a fool I was," her eyes had moved back to the babe sometime during her speech.
Slowly rocking the child side to side. "The marriage was a shame; putting together two entities of the same coin is only a disaster. It reflected upon our children." At this, she looked up to the ceiling and wiped her tears. "Between my dastardly marriage and myself being too broken, my children suffered. Some of them became the embodiment of my fractioned mind. I couldn't be the mother they deserve or even love them." Looking back at Poseidon, her black eyes reflected an eagerness to be understood. "You know my pain. You understand the hell of our minds. The sad reality of our existence. Don't you earth shaker?" Poseidon's eyes shifted to that of sympathy, knowing all too well the tragedy that comes with this existence.
"A rare few days of sanity led me to this evil pipeline of self-reflection. I fled the pit to the surface world and stationed myself in Alaska, far enough away that the kindergarten class couldn't find me." The woman looked back down at the baby adoringly. "That's where I met Blake's father."