Disclaimer: Don't own PJO or the Whiskered Warrior.
Lunar Phases
Lego House
Mend.
A verb and a noun. A way to fix and proof of repair. If something is broken, it can be put back together. Some think it impossible to truly mend something that's broken. The minds, spirits, hearts, and bodies of men are such examples of things that seem impossible to repair. The gods — the smith god, Hephaestus, especially — will tell you that it's not, it just takes time. However, even for gods, time is a precious thing, and they dare not waste it on the likes of broken mortals. Not without good reason.
January 25, 2009
Naruto awoke to the sound of a door clicking shut. He kept his eyes shut, not entirely sure if he was safe. His other senses took in the environment. The faint smell of cheap alcohol and fruit juice lingered on the couch he currently laid on. Pollux's apartment. He knew because he could hear horns as they honked outside, and recognized the boy's familiar scent of grapes and body wash hidden beneath the stronger scent of cleaning (and consumable) alcohol.
It was a soft breath and a noticeable weight on his person that had his eyes crack open. Thalia was once more using him as a mattress, her closed eyes and steady breaths affirmed her deep slumber. Her head was turned to her right, so that she faced away from the back of the couch. Rested under his left shoulder, her hand had a tight grip on something, likely her spear in its condensed mace canister form. Naruto's left arm was wrapped around her back, and his right was under his head, adding cushioning to the otherwise hard couch arm.
Content they were relatively safe, he closed his eyes again.
"She was worried about you. Said you haven't been sleeping well."
Naruto did his best not to tense. His left eye cracked open and through his bleary gaze, he saw Minato watching them. He was sitting on the edge of a coffee table. Their bags were at his feet.
"...Where's Pollux?"
"He had to go to work." The assassin-turned-god smiled. "He's a good kid. A good friend."
"Yeah." Naruto agreed in a tense, clipped tone. The growl that threatened to emerge from his throat was swallowed back. He shifted and carefully extracted himself from underneath his still sleeping girlfriend. She clutched for him, but a gentle stroke of her face, a featherlight graze along the line of freckles that bridged across her nose and ended before her ear, helped her relax back into her slumber. Once he was on his feet, he looked at his father and nodded towards the kitchen.
Wordlessly, Minato nodded and followed him. Naruto went to the fridge and grabbed a Grape Soda from within. He popped the tab and took a sip before he turned and scrutinized his father.
"So, what happened? Last thing I remember is your...unexplained math lesson."
"Hecate found you. Or me. I'm honestly not sure." Minato admitted as he leaned against the opposite counter. "Regardless, she found us and I wasn't about to risk either of you being ensnared by her magic. It's nice to be able to think for myself again. I mean, talk about reliving a nightmare."
"Mm." Naruto hummed and sipped his soda. "Doesn't explain why I don't remember it."
"Ah, yes, well…" His father looked rather embarrassed and refused to meet his gaze. "I had to, uh...She was already going after you again...So, I…"
Bastard got in a cheap shot. The Fox growled over the stammered explanation. Naruto wrinkled his nose, somewhat annoyed.
"You... sucker punched me?"
"I would call it more of a, erm, a preemptive strike." Minato offered with a weak smile. Naruto rolled his eyes. His father scratched his head. "Well, sorry, son. I had to do something. I couldn't let her get you again. Especially with the backdoor that was left for her when Arashi was around."
"...What?" Naruto almost dropped his drink. He didn't like the implications of that statement.
"When Arashi...That is, er. Look, Naruto, son, I'm not...I can't apologize enough–"
"Agreed, but that's not what I'm bothered about right now." The son of Artemis felt his lip curl and the hairs on his neck stand up as he glared at his father. "What. Back. Door."
"The seal? The one I–er, Arashi put on your neck after you two fought in the Underworld?"
"That never..." Naruto opened and closed his mouth. He'd almost forgotten. He'd almost forgotten of their first true fight. Where he was trounced, effortlessly, by his father. A mortal man scantly a decade his senior – and they had to have a more thorough conversation about that, too! – defeated him as if he hadn't been the one to beat Lycaon.
Ha! The Fox suddenly roared in laughter. Your father gave you a tramp stamp!
"Get it off. Get it off, right now!" Naruto demanded with a scowl. Minato scratched his cheek.
"Funny thing. It's a very advanced seal with a killswitch. Any attempt to remove it...Well, I altered it to close off Hecate's access, but I shouldn't remove it."
"I'm telling you to try." The half-full can in his hand slowly crushed in his grip. He had to calm down, sugary soda was a pain to clean up.
"Naruto, it's not that I can't, I could...but you'd...There's a kill switch that is connected to your cerebral cortex."
That sounds important. The Fox mumbled.
It is. Very much so. Naruto felt a cold sweat roll down his neck and his warming blood cooled drastically. That portion of the brain was, according to the theories in mortal science anyway, essentially everything that made him him. Resigned to its presence on his person, he rubbed his eyes. "So, this seal thing...what does it do exactly?"
"Well, essentially it's a marker. A sort of tracking method for my Hiraishin. But along with that was access for the foreign energy to bypass whatever protections Artemis or Apollo or anyone put on you."
There was one part of that explanation Naruto considered vital.
"Tracking method." He repeated dryly. He was not that unlucky, was he? What were the odds that both his adoptive mother and biological father would have a way to track him?
"Well, yes. It's how Arashi-er, um, well, I could appear behind you so fast. Granted, yesterday I couldn't pinpoint it as well as Arashi could," Minato said. His eyes narrowed at a spot in the ceiling as he rubbed his chin. "Maybe it's all the divine energy I have, tossing my control out of whack. Huh, whack. That's a funny word, I've never used it before. Whack? Whack. Whack-whack-whack."
Has…has he always been like this? Naruto asked his forced companion as he watched his father test the word on his tongue.
Like what? A dick? Yes. Absolutely, one-hundred percent.
No, Naruto thought as his father started to ramble on about differences in languages, then trying to figure out the odds of alternate realities' linguistic developments aligning so closely together and then jumping to the mathematical theories of infinite realities and timelines. Has he always been...this easily distracted?
You mean has he always been an airheaded genius not worth his hype?
I guess...Yeah?
Always. The Fox deadpanned. For as long as The Bitch knew him, he's always been like this.
Huh…By the way, we really need to talk about how you refer to my birth mother. Naruto thought before he caught a snippet of his father's rambling.
"...Then again with your chakra coils being active despite not being used…"
"Wait, hold up. What?" Naruto frowned. Minato blinked.
"Hm?"
"My chakra what?"
"Oh, yeah. Your chakra coils are surprisingly well-developed despite your lack of training." Minato nodded. He leaned in, hand on his chin, and heavily scrutinized him before poking and prodding at points on his body. "It's actually kind of interesting…normally unused coils are deteriorated and rendered useless. But yours...quite sturdy. The Uzumaki bloodline, perhaps?"
Pft, as if! You're welcome, by the way. The Fox rumbled. Damn things were so atrophied I basically had to rebuild them from scratch to get some legroom. I deserve commendation and a reward for the hard work, too. Do me a favor and rip out your father's trachea!
He's a god. I don't think it'd kill him.
Right. Dammit. ...Okay, well, at least kick your dear old sperm donor in the dick.
Tempting, but no.
…Pretty please?
I'm not fighting a god in Pollux's kitchen! The last thing we need is Dionysus to stumble across us!
You'll regret that when you're dying and you need me to save you.
If I die, you die.
Eennn, wrongo, Boy. You die, I dissipate into the aether and reform after a decade or two. The Fox sounded so smug. Naruto but back a growl when it chuckled at his perceived annoyance. Suck it, Fleshbag!
"Is that a no?"
"Hm?" Naruto blinked, finding his father looking at him expectantly.
"I said I could teach you how to properly use chakra. If you'd want, that is." Minato repeated. He had a hopeful smile on his face. "We'd just have to do so in an unpopulated area...chakra can be rather dangerous."
There was a hopeful gleam in his eye that made Naruto feel...well, weird. Not weird in a bad way, but weird in a way he couldn't find the words to properly describe it. It was similar to how he felt whenever his mother would express her pride in his growth, be it as a marksman or as a hunter, but it was not exactly the same. Still, with the gleam diminishing from Minato's eyes and the slowly falling smile, Naruto realized he hadn't answered.
"I need to think about it."
"Understandable." Minato nodded. He looked a little disappointed, but still had a small smile on his face. "Any other questions I can answer?"
"...Yeah, I've got one." Naruto set his drink down. He crossed his arms and leaned against the counter. "What, um, what was...what was my birth mother like?"
"Is that all? Sure." Minato chuckled and a wistful look appeared in his eye. "Where do I even begin? ...ah, I've got it. Okay, it was our first day in the Konohagakure Shinobi Academy. Your mother was a new transfer, and she immediately laid out her life goals in front of the whole class…"
Cold.
Thalia woke up feeling cold. She hated being cold. She tossed on the couch and sought out her boyfriend's warm body. Whiskers was hot. ...Not–Well, yes, in that way, but she also meant it literally. His body temperature was higher than hers, heat radiated from him like a furnace. A big, warm cuddly furnace.
Where is… Her eyes snapped open. Whiskers wasn't there. She shot up, eyes wide in a panic. She had fallen asleep atop of him, hadn't she? Where was he? And how did he keep doing that?!
"She didn't!" Whiskers' dumbfounded proclamation slowed her racing heart to regular levels.
"I swear to you on my master's grave, that's the truth!" The other speaker sped them up again.
"But it's a dictatorship, right? Wasn't she worried about being reprimanded for defacing his office?"
"Kushina marched to the beat of her own drum. Not to mention she was essentially the equivalent of a weapon of mass distraction with her skill set. Why, if she'd not turned down the position when it was offered, she might've gotten it instead of me."
"Gods…"
"On top of that, she was a VIP. Being the last member of her clan gave her a lot of leeway."
"See, that oddly makes way more sense."
Okay, found Whiskers. Thalia slumped against the couch and pinched the bridge of her nose once the voices registered in her head. Of course he was just in the other room. How did he get out from beneath her though? Why wouldn't he wake her up? When did he wake up? Did he sleep longer?
The only way I'll find out is by getting up and asking him myself. Thalia thought with a frown. She stretched and got up from the couch, rolling her stiff neck to loosen it. She went into the adjourning kitchen, finding her boyfriend and the assassin-turned-god that was his father engrossed in conversation.
"…Kushina was fiercely loyal, and I never got the full story of how she got out of that bandit camp. Nor why she carried three pinky toes on her person from then on." Minato muttered to himself, sounding just as disturbed as she felt hearing that. Whiskers nodded to himself.
"A prank and a punishment all wrapped up in one. Not to mention a great method of warding off future attacks."
"Speaking from experience?" Thalia asked, making herself known. Both blond men looked at her and...gods, it was so weird how much Whiskers looked like his father, just with a rounder face and his namesake on his cheeks. Not as weird as having said man acting so...nice to them. That just put her on edge, especially since he'd almost…Thalia barely managed to register that her hand had started to rise to her neck and hastily lowered it back down to her side. Instead, she tore her eyes away from the man and met Whiskers' eyes.
"Morning, Tree Girl." Her boyfriend nodded at her. A crushed soda can was on the counter just to his left. Her eyes narrowed slightly. Something had happened. She gave him an accusing glance and his eyes reflected a promise: Later. They flicked at the third in the room, and she followed his glance, before she gave him an understanding nod.
"Ah, Thalia. Pleasant morning to you. Tea?" The other blond man asked, holding a steaming cup...Where did he–? Right. God. Ugh, just once she'd like to have a day that didn't have anything to do with the weirdness of their life. Hm, odd that the last time she had a day like that was right before she and Whiskers started dating…Nah, that was probably just a coincidence.
"I'm good." She muttered. A terse silence fell over the kitchen as Minato lowered the cup and an awkward smile crossed his face.
"Er...I, are you more of a coffee person? I always make that mistake."
"Really, I'm fine." Thalia clenched her jaw. Her hand slipped into her jacket pocket and gripped onto the mace canister there.
"Oh, well, um, perhaps I could whip up some–"
"Minato, maybe you should make sure the Jiangshi can't get in this building." Whiskers suggested suddenly. Minato looked at him as if he grew a second head.
"Hm? Naruto, I told you already that I–"
"Double check." Whiskers glanced at her, then back at him and–Oh. Realization crossed both of their faces and Thalia felt even more uncomfortable. "Please."
"Ah, um...Yes. That, ahem, that sounds like a good idea." Minato smiled again, a small bitter thing, before he flickered away in a flash of yellow.
"This is so damn ...weird." Thalia grumbled, she hated enemies that turned out to be… not-enemies. It was hard to not want to stab them for coughing or something. It just didn't happen to demigods. (Nor enemies turning into gods. That was another issue on its own.)
Heroes got betrayed, period.
"If it makes you feel better, I spent a good portion of the past hour trying not to stab him in the throat with this can." Whiskers gestured at the crushed can with his thumb. Her scowl lifted slightly as she imagined the attempt.
"Mortal stabs a god with a Grape Soda can. That'd be a first."
"And a last." Whiskers' dark sense of humor reared its head and she fought down a small laugh. Instead she ventured closer to him and leaned on the counter beside him.
"So, he's, you know, all good? No tricky stuff?" She asked, paranoia ringing in her head.
"...I don't know what to think about him." Her boyfriend admitted with a frown. "A month ago, no. I wouldn't believe it. I scarcely believe it now. But Minato is...different from Arashi."
Thalia slowly nodded, and understood everything he didn't say. Yes, the simple assessment was an understatement if ever there was one, but all the same, the man...god...was Naruto's father. Biological. Legitimate.
"I...I think maybe some part of me wants to believe he's being genuine." Whiskers mumbled. He lifted a hand to his head and rubbed his temples with his thumb and index finger. "But, after yesterday..."
Thalia stilled. So much happened yesterday. The blissful hours before the appointment. The numbness and sorrow she felt after it. Then, another monster attacked. Her apartment was probably trashed. Again. Twice in two months is way too much. If this continued, would their lives ever be normal? Not that they could, given she couldn't– A wave of anxiety like she'd never felt before washed over her and she sought distraction.
"I mean, he's your dad." Thalia tried to shift the topic before she fell into that hole. She rubbed the top of her foot against the back of her leg, her ADHD was acting up and fabricated an itch just so she would fidget. "You, uh, you…you shouldn't throw that away. After we confirm everything, of course. Not sure how we could do that, but...if…"
She wasn't ever going to see that woman again, Melinoe's darkly spot-on interpretation notwithstanding, but the thought had been planted. What if it wasn't all Beryl's fault? What if all of that madness was from brainwashing or magic or whatever? A small, corroded part of the demigoddess almost wished it to be true. It would make everything so much easier.
"Hey." Whiskers' hand found the middle of her back. She looked up and found his eyes searching hers. "Are you okay? I mean, yesterday was–"
"Hm? Yeah, sure, psh!" Thalia waved him off before he could finish. She went to the fridge for a drink, suddenly thirsty. "Just another day in the life."
"Tree Girl."
Crap. He noticed. Of course, he noticed. Whiskers knew her as well as she knew him. It worked in her favor often enough – especially during the past month whenever she had to entice him to continue their 'explorations' – but it was a double-edged sword. She knew when he was troubled, and he knew when she was. They knew how to help each other, but she didn't need help with this. Not that there was anything that could help her with it. She just had to accept that nothing could help her as a fact, and move on.
Well, almost nothing…Thalia thought as her face warmed when her thoughts turned less than child friendly. She shook them away and huffed to herself. Dammit, sometimes she wished she'd just taken an oath of celibacy or something.
Still, Thalia Grace was not one to just roll over and accept defeat, nor would she so easily take poorly masked pity. Not even from her boyfriend. Not even if it revolved around his father almost killing her, or her inability to–Nope. Not thinking about it.
Maybe food would help?
"You think Pollux would mind if we ate this leftover pizza?" She asked, looking at the box in the fridge. The receipt said it was a day old, and sure, it would be pizza for breakfast, but pizza was pizza. And judging by the receipt, this one had all the major food groups in it.
A healthy breakfast, for sure.
"Tree Girl." The flat tone told her that Whiskers was not fooled. Like most of her problems she could not punch or electrocute, she ignored it. …She felt his stare bore into her head.
Don't look. Don't look. Thalia continued digging around in the fridge. You won't break if you don't look! Just keep looking in the fridge. Hey, is that a carton of chinese from A Wok in the Clouds? I wonder if–Wait, January fourteenth?
"Ew, Pollux! That is just disgusting!" She grimaced as she grabbed the carton and took it to the trash can. A miscalculation on her part. Whiskers maneuvered to stand between her and the fridge on her return.
"Thalia, talk to me."
"Whiskers, I'm cool. We have other things to worry about."
"You're not answering my question." Whiskers crossed his arms. "And don't say that you are! You're giving me two word responses, Thalia. You're not fine."
"I am fine." There, three words ought to pacify him. "Now please move so I can start reheating breakfast."
"Tree Girl, come on. I don't–I don't want to start a fight over this."
"Then don't." Thalia shrugged. Whiskers scowled at her.
"You're deflecting. Again."
"And you're not?" She crossed her arms, annoyed that she was being put on the defensive. "You didn't answer my question about your father."
"Because it's a complicated situation and I don't know how to react to it. I hate him, I have hated him for years, but now that I know him? That I've met him and spoken with him? I-I don't want to hate him. And I hate that. …Does that make sense to you?"
Yes. Absolutely. That Woman was a lot of things – the words horrid, drunk, and neglectful came to mind – but she was still her mother. Thalia didn't want to hate her mother, but she did. She hadn't wanted to hate her father, either, and for a minute, it looked like she wasn't going to, but then yesterday happened and–
"It's raining. Thalia, please." Stupid atmokinesis! It always ratted her out. Blue windows stared at her, adoration, concern and the enticing light she associated with his love reflected in them. "Just talk to me."
"Whiskers, what do you want me to say?!" Thalia exploded. As much as she wanted to at the moment, she couldn't will herself to be numb. Her chest felt heavy, like lead, and her emotions surged out of her like a storm. "Yesterday–I...I don't know! I'm angry! Big shocker, right?!"
"And that's fine–"
"It shouldn't be fine! I shouldn't be...–Everything good in my life, everything good, is taken from me!" Thalia snapped. "First, Jason! Then my friends! And now–...Now I found out that I can't even…!"
"I'm still here." Whiskers frowned. He had his arm around her shoulders. When did they embrace? Olympus help her, he was warm—No, bad ADHD, don't derail this!
"And how long until I lose you, too?!" Thalia tore away from him as the sky rumbled with her frustration. "You're always doing reckless stuff! Like it or not, you're still just a mortal Whiskers– Hell, even if I'm a demigod, I'm a mortal, too! All it takes is one misstep and we aren't together anymore and that's–! I can't –!"
"Hey. Hey!" His bark stirred her from the dark turn her tumbling thoughts took her down. Then, his hands cupped her face and his eyes stared into hers again. "Don't go there, Thalia. We agreed, remember?"
She did. After their first sober coupling, once emotions and blood cooled, they talked. About their relationship, about their future, about the war. Gods, there was still a war on. Whiskers told her of the desires that lurked in the dark corners of his mind, desires she found herself sharing, and they agreed that even if they never found a way to sate them, they would face Hades' judgment together. They made an agreement to not worry too much about the inevitable.
A gentle stroke across her freckled cheek broke her from her thoughts.
"I'll be there for you," he promised. His temple rested against hers, a gentle nuzzle, an assurance. "And you'll be there for me. Right?"
"Right." She nodded. She closed her eyes and rested her head in his hand, moving closer to just embrace him again. His arms wrapped around her, his warmth surrounded her. They stood there for a good moment in Pollux's kitchen. The fridge beeped, an irritant that was dealt with by a quick movement of Whiskers' arm, before it returned to envelop her again. The harsh rain that fell calmed into a drizzle.
"He wants to train me."
Well, that was an abrupt right turn she hadn't been ready for.
"Context." Thalia mumbled. Whiskers' chuckle resonated in his chest. Not as comforting as his appreciative growls that made her toes curl… and that train of thought was going to get them in trouble. Reel it in, Almighty Libido.
"Minato. He wants to teach me how to use chakra."
"The ninja magic?"
"I refuse to call it that." Whiskers huffed. "Ninjas don't need magic."
"I'm now going to always call it that." She laughed a little and felt the tension rise from her shoulders.
"Great." He muttered. She knew he had rolled his eyes and punished him with a pinch on the side. "Ow, rude."
"You like it." He did, too. She knew. Soft pinches, nips on his tanned peach-colored skin–Wow, it's only been…what? Two days since their last tryst and she's this bad? The 'Zeus' was strong in her family.
"Anyways..." Whiskers cleared his throat and Thalia just knew his face was reddened. Gods, was it wrong she thought his bashful approach to anything related to sex was cute? Meh, even if it was, it wasn't going to change her mind on it. Her boyfriend was cute and hot. Based on what little she remembered of her old high school's social standards, she had essentially won the dating game.
Screw everyone who says its 'not a competition'. It is, and I won. Thalia smirked.
"Minato wants to train me. My chakra is, apparently, potent." Whiskers continued, unaware of her competitive nature riling up. "And that's because of The Fox. It's...A demon or something? I don't know, he started to get technical about it and he almost had a crisis after it came up that it can hear him."
"So, The Fox is what? An extra battery pack? The energizer fox?" That last thought brought a smile to her face. Her boyfriend let out a laugh.
"Yeah, The Fox hated that description. I am absolutely calling it that now." He kissed her lips with a grin on his face. Yet another mark of victory for Thalia going on the tally board. The kiss was, wisely and disappointingly, kept brief. "But yeah, chakra is dangerous...and noticeable to the Torchbearer."
Thalia's smile fell into a scowl.
"Is it wrong that I hope Zeus demotes her after this is over?"
"Is there a position lower than Minor God?" Whiskers arched a brow. Thalia tilted her head and considered it.
"Nature spirit, maybe?"
"So...your friend Grover...Is, what? A pseudo-god?"
"I..I guess? Huh, I never thought about it like that. Go, Grover." Thalia had to check in with Annie and ask about Grover. Hopefully he's holding up well as the Lord of the Wild. ...Annnd now she remembered that even Gods can die. Great. She shook the thought from her head and looked back up at her boyfriend. "So, other than making me realize I might've been disrespecting my friend who might essentially be a god by not checking on him, what was the point of bringing up this training thing?"
"I think I'm going to accept. We'll have to go out of the city, and I won't lie, I won't be crying over it." Whiskers smiled, an excited gleam in his eye. Thalia smiled back at him, endeared by his love for the wilderness and outdoors. That smile almost fell when he continued speaking. "And I think you should go back to Camp when we leave."
She wasn't sure when she got hit in the head hard enough to get a concussion, but she had to have. The sentence she just heard come out of her boyfriend's mouth could not have been the actual combination of words he used. Not after the argument they just had, the worry she expressed and the agreement they'd briefly revisited.
"You're funny." Thalia decided to humor her boyfriend and smiled up at him. She'd play along, this once. His smile fell and his eyes averted from her gaze, locked on the wall behind her. A pit formed in her stomach. He wasn't–He seriously couldn't mean-?!
"I, ahem," he cleared his throat after his words faltered and tried again. He still wasn't meeting her eyes. "I wasn't joking."
Ah. So it was a fight he wanted. Darn it, and she was so sure she'd won the dating game. Alas, her boyfriend was an idiot.
Thalia felt her eyes narrow and she pushed away from him.
"No."
"Thalia, just let–"
"No!" She batted his hand aside and scowled at him. "Don't start with that cliché argument crap, Whiskers! We're not going to argue over this! I told you already, I'm not going back to Camp until you can go, too!"
"Not even if Annie needed you?"
"This isn't about her and how dare you try to guilt me into it!"
"I wasn't trying to." Whiskers held his hands up in an effort to placate her anger. Like she wouldn't be angry at him when he was lying to her face! He frowned. "Thalia, I swear, I wasn't. I don't want to argue about it either. Just listen, I want you to go back–"
"You just said–!"
"Let me finish before you go for my throat!" Whiskers snarled and took one step forward. She stared at him, or more specifically, at his eyes. The two deep blue oceans bled into angry, bright crimson pools. The slit pupils gave him a wilder appearance, the flared nostrils and bared teeth did little to dissuade that thought, and his namesake seemed...thicker, somehow, only building on the feral appearance. He glared at her for a long moment before he blinked. The tension in the air dropped as he stepped back and pinched the bridge of his nose.
"I'm so...I'm sorry, Tree Girl. That was...I was out of line." He sighed, eyes back to their beautiful blue shades. "I just...I haven't...We were in such a rush, and...I didn't think we wouldn't head back for them–"
…We forgot his medicine. Thalia realized. Whiskers hadn't yet taken his medicine. She frowned as another thought occurred to her. He hadn't gone through his usual morning routine, the (for lack of a better term) 'wake-up' nuzzle. She liked that part of her morning, but kept her lips shut. It wasn't that important right now.
Instead, Thalia took a deep breath and forcibly calmed down. The last thing she wanted to do was get into a screaming match. They'd only done that once before, not even a few weeks ago.
It was after their drunken tryst, started by a subtle attempt on her part to get intimate that flew over his head. His misunderstanding frustrated her and his prodding over her frustration made her shut him out for a day. That in turn frustrated him, but he held his tongue. The fight didn't truly begin until a day after. It only came to a stop because she'd wound up saying something that, needless to say, ended their spat in its tracks. It wasn't something she liked to think about. He'd been in the right the whole time and it took her an entire day of clipped, short responses to admit to herself she had been in the wrong. Two days later, she apologized for what she said, and he told her he'd forgiven her the day after he was so clipped, before he apologized for that. They settled the matter with a date that ended with their first sober union that got them started on this journey.
With the One Week of Hell fresh in her mind Thalia crossed her arms and leaned away from him, visibly displaying her annoyance with his words.
"Okay. I'm listening, Whiskers." For now.
"When Minato and I leave," he started again, "I think you should go back to Camp. Get some information from Annie, look for anything that might hint at foreign monsters."
"No." She said without thinking. Although, as she thought about it, it was how she felt. He sighed tiredly, likely expecting another argument.
"I'm not sending you away forever, Tree Girl–"
"No, Whiskers," Thalia stepped up to put a hand on his shoulder. "I don't need to go to Camp for that. I can stay with you and do that while you train your cat-tra or whatever it's called."
"Chakra." He muttered. His brows furrowed. "But how else are you going to check in with–?"
"Annie's got a cell phone." Thalia thoroughly enjoyed the baffled confusion that flickered across her boyfriend's face. She snickered as sounds that weren't fully formed words fumbled out of his mouth before he managed to make a semi-coherent statement.
"...I...What?!"
"Yeah, her dad got her one. If we've got to ask Annie something, I'll get a disposable and call her on it." Thalia shrugged, her smile still in place. Her boyfriend blinked a few times before he rubbed his face with his hand.
"Okay. Well, if you're coming we're definitely going to need some help hiding." Whiskers sighed. "Minato wanted to take me back to Storm King Mountain, he says he has seals there, but...those won't account for your scent. ...And we've been there so both of our scents are strong...not to mention Valkyrie apparently patrol that area..."
"...I think I have some very strong opinions on this hairbrained scheme of yours, Whiskers." Thalia deadpanned. He didn't even have a plan, just an outline. Heck, it wasn't even step one! It was the blueprints for the idea of what step one would be!
"It's not a–You were not invited to this conversation." Whiskers suddenly hissed, glaring at nothing. Thalia arched a brow at him and he closed his eyes. He growled. "Sorry. Fox. Interjected where its not wanted! –You're not!"
"We need to get your medicine." Thalia decided. That was the most important thing right now. Whiskers nodded, slightly morose as he growled and grumbled to himself. She rubbed his arm. "Should we go back to the apartment?"
"Probably not the best idea."
Thalia looked at the entryway to the kitchen and tensed at seeing Minato stand there. Every fiber of her being wanted to chuck a bolt of lightning at him. It was a bad idea, she knew that, but she'd felt as though she'd feel better if she did. Still, he interrupted them.
"This is a private conversation." She grumbled. The man-turned-god shrugged.
"Sorry for eavesdropping. Old habits die hard."
"You could die…" Thalia grumbled under her breath. She winced, closing her eyes. "Sorry."
"It's understandable." Thalia opened her eyes and saw a bittersweet smile on his face. He shook his head. "Anyway, we couldn't get within blocks of the building if we wanted to. I tried and almost got...noticed."
"What?" Thalia frowned. Whiskers groaned and palmed his head. She arched a brow at his reaction. "What, Whiskers?"
"Thalia, we're in New York City." She gave him a flat stare and he rolled his eyes. "A building basically exploded."
Realization sank in.
"Right." She mumbled. An uncomfortable silence settled over the three of them. "I don't think we should check the news. Who knows what The Mist is showing the mortals."
Knowing her luck, she might just get set as the fall girl for the whole mess. Thalia remembered Annie's recounting of Percy's first quest. How they crossed the country as wanted terrorists was anyone's guess.
"Hecate is petty like that." Minato nodded.
"Understatement." Whiskers scoffed. He leaned against the counter, pulling Thalia with him and rested his arm over her shoulders. "So, I don't have my meds. Great."
"You're not going to turn...are you?" Thalia frowned. Whiskers shrugged. She didn't like that answer.
"What?" Minato blinked, confused.
They tried to briefly explain why Whiskers needed meds. It took an hour, maybe longer, because Minato kept asking questions. Far too many and too detailed questions. Questions that...honestly, Thalia didn't think anyone save for Apollo and Asceplius had answers to.
"Okay, I think I understand. Son, I'm going to come back to how terrible an idea that fight was at a later date." The war god's words made Whiskers groan and Thalia smirked at him. Even his dick of a dad agreed with her on how bad an idea taking Lycaon on alone was. Minato rubbed his face tiredly. "Is there another place we can get his medication from? His doctor's office?"
Thalia grimaced. She really didn't want to see Asceplius again so soon. Not after she got her bad news...but Whiskers really needed his meds. The hand attached to the arm draped over her shoulder hadn't exactly been idle. She was doing her best to ignore it as it stroked her side.
"We'd, um, have to get in touch with Asceplius. Whiskers?" She looked at her boyfriend. Once again, he refused to meet her gaze and his hand had stopped stroking her. This time, it was more a sheepish air that surrounded him than a nervous one. "What? Can't you just call him?"
"...Would you believe I forgot my phone at the apartment…?"
Thalia withheld a groan, but it was reasonable.
"Whiskers–"
"I thought it was in my jacket." Whiskers hung his head at her disappointed stare. A sharp whine emitted from him, which shocked her more than anything. He saw her reaction and immediately stopped. His eyes flicked between her and his father and his cheeks flushed. "Let's, um...Let's forget that happened."
Thalia was not going to forget that happened.
"What's our next move then?" Minato asked, acting like the boring, mature adult he was and moving past it. His eyes flicked to the windows. "We need to get moving. My protective measures aren't going to last here."
"What do you mean?" Whiskers asked.
"This apartment belongs to a demigod, yes?"
"...Ah."
"What?" Thalia frowned. She hated that her boyfriend and his father seemed to be alike enough that they could have such swift understanding. Whiskers looked at her.
"Mr. D."
Ah, right. Dionysus. After what happened to Castor, he had become very protective of his other lone demigod. Annie said he disappeared sporadically, and she knew it wasn't just to go to Council Meetings because she overheard Chiron chide the god for it. Dionysus was probably keeping an eye on Pollux's place and would probably notice the foreign godly power coming from it.
"Okay, so...what do we do?" Thalia frowned. "We need to get Whiskers his medicine and then find somewhere safe for you to train."
"Preferably somewhere that is safe from the gazes of both Olympus and Othrys." Minato added. Thalia nodded begrudgingly.
Whiskers frowned for a moment, and then he smiled.
"I think I have an idea."
Since her folly in November, Leto had been in a sort of 'forced exile'. Artemis hadn't spoken to her in months, and while that wasn't entirely new, the reason for her daughter's cold shoulder was terribly understandable. The minor goddess of motherhood had, inadvertently, been the reason her grandson had been abducted. It was a slight to her domain, and Hera had not been lenient in doling out her punishment.
"This is torture." Leto grumbled as she reclined on a lounge chair under the light of her son's chariot beside the private pool of a Marriott Hotel. She was clad in a modest black bikini with a white blouse bundled at the side of her chair. Given she had a figure most wouldn't expect of a mother well over six-thousand years old, one would be forgiven for staring at her. Many of the mortals were, but she was too wrapped up in her grousing to pay them any mind.
Normally if such a stay was orchestrated by her son, Leto would enjoy herself to her fullest. Alas, when Hera wanted her to suffer, Leto suffered. As a titan-goddess that held the domain of motherhood, she needed to mother, to care, to raise and oversee. The drive was in her very ichor.
But no-o-o, she had to deal with hormonal mortals that thought she was some old movie star or something. The staff was waiting on her hand and foot, and it was driving the Letoides' mother up the wall. At least the poolside services were nice. Though, a lot of young men were getting severe cases of sunburn. Really, someone ought to tell them to apply more sunblock–
No, don't make it worse on yourself. Leto thought, her eyes closing in frustration. Oh, but such cruel temptations. She had one pass she could use outside of a visit from either Artemis or Apollo, but whenever she felt tempted to cash in on it, something else would interfere and the problem she saw needed fixed would have been resolved.
If Leto used that pass, that was it. She would have to suffer a month more of this torture. Unable to mother. Unable to aid.
But if Leto didn't use the pass...If she withheld from succumbing to her urge to mother, Hera would grant her a favor to cash in on whenever. She. Wanted.
"That's worth its weight in Imperial Gold." Leto muttered to herself as she accepted the fresh iced martini that was needlessly brought to her. She glared at the staff, hoping briefly it was a dryad or minor goddess that Hera sent to keep watch on her, but no. Just an eager young girl wanting to leave an impression on her. The poor dear needed to relax and focus on her studies, join a club outside of working and school, if Leto could just offer that advice–
"The favor. Think of the favor." Leto mumbled to herself.
"I-Is there anything else, ma'am?"
"No, thank you. Have a good day." Leto smiled at the girl. Please go before I give in. Please, just go.
"Of course, just call if you need anything." The girl beamed and skipped away.
"I will!" Leto smiled at the mortal's retreating form before she glared at the sky. "Hera? I mean this in the most respectful way possible: You're a bitch."
"Er...Should–Should I call back?"
Leto almost jumped. She looked to her left, at the Iris Message portal that suddenly appeared beside her. How had she missed that? Ah, yes. She was wallowing. Wallowing mothers tended to be neglectful. She shook her head and focused on the portal, before beaming at the caller.
"Naruto! Oh, sweetie, how are you?" The sight of her beautiful grandson filled her with a sense of relief she didn't know she needed. She frowned suddenly and put a hand on her chest. "I'm sorry I haven't called or visited since Thanksgiving–"
"It's fine, Gran-Gran." Naruto smiled his little Artemis-like smile at her and she felt her cheeks begin to hurt already. "I was actually calling because I need your help."
"My help?" Leto's smile dimmed. "I'm sorry, dear. I don't know what I can do for you that your mother and uncle cannot."
"Well, mom and I had an...argument, to say the least, and Uncle Fred's not exactly discreet–"
"Understatement, Whiskers." Hello, what's this?
"Is that Thalia?" Leto's smile brightened as the girl in question squeezed herself into the call. Naruto was forced to put his arm around her. Or...or did he choose to put his arm around her? "Hello, dear! How are you, Thalia?"
"I'm okay, Lady Leto." Thalia gave her a half-smile. She leaned against Naruto before there was a click of a door shutting. Naruto mumbled something and the daughter of Zeus rolled her eyes. "Look, it's not my fault that Pollux's bathroom is cramped."
"Are you ...did you two move out?" Leto frowned. The bathroom they were in seemed so much smaller and her words implied they were staying elsewhere. Why? Thalia had such a lovely place and clearly it was spacious enough for them. And for the eventual expansion of their fam–Don't get ahead of yourself, Leto. You don't know they're together for sure yet.
"More like we were, uh… evicted." Thalia shrugged.
A pin could've dropped and all the cries of children in the world would be lost to Leto's ears. The titan-goddess took a deep breath. The upper air flowed through her ichor. She was revitalized as she felt for her domains and the tale of her children's birth passing through the lips of the few million mortals reciting it around the world.
Nope. She was still furious.
"I'll be there in five minutes." Leto assured them, putting the brightest smile on her face she could muster. She would suffer whatever punishment would come from her leaving the Floridian hotel.
"Gran-Gran, no, it's not–Tree Girl, look what you did!" Her grandson was so easily flustered, and it was so adorable whenever it happened.
"Now, Naruto, don't be upset. I'll be there to help you, not usurp your status."
"What–No, Gran-Gran, please listen!" Naruto pinched the bridge of his nose. "We weren't evicted–"
"I mean, we might as well have been."
"Not helping, Tree Girl." Naruto used his nickname for her again and Leto felt her smile become just a smidge more genuine. Her grandson looked at her. "Grandmother Leto, you don't have to come here. I just need you to call Asceplius for me and tell him that my meds got blown up along with the apartment."
Another long silence hung in the air.
"...Two minutes. I'll be right there." Leto's smile turned cold. "Iris, dear, I need to make a call.
"No, Grand–!"
"Bye, love you! See you soon~!" Leto waved before the call ended and Iris' rainbow shimmered in front of her. Leto sat up in her seat and cleared her throat. "O dear Iris, Goddess of the Rainbow, please show me Hera, Queen of Olympus."
AN: Whoo, made it.
Almost forgot to update this morning. Would've been a 8 hour wait...
EDIT (6/12/2022): I forgot to mention there would be a two-three week hiatus until chapter 28. I have to attend a wedding, and writing will be on hold.
Reason for additional length of hiatus - I need a small break to uh…work on a side project with Engineer4Ever.
You'll read about it soon enough.