(Percy is 9 years old)
A figure emerged from the shadows—her presence bending the air like heat over a flame. Artemis.
The goddess strode into the clearing, her silver tunic untouched by mud or blood. Her eyes, colder than winter stars, swept over the scene: the dead wolves with their smoldering fur, the scattered embers of the fire, the Hunters' tense faces. When her gaze landed on me, I felt it like a weight—ancient, unyielding, and sharper than Zoe's arrows.
"Report," she said, her voice calm but carrying the edge of a storm.
Zoe stepped forward, her head bowed. "Lykanthropos attacked just before dawn. Three of them. The boy…" She hesitated, "He manipulated the water. Held the beast in place so I could finish it."
Artemis crouched beside the wolf carcass, her fingers brushing the waterlogged claw marks. The creature's fur was singed, its muzzle twisted in a final snarl. "You did this?" she asked, though it wasn't really a question.
"It was an accident," I blurted, my voice too loud in the silence. "I didn't mean to—I just—"
"Intent matters little," she interrupted, standing. Her eyes narrowed, studying me like a puzzle she hadn't yet solved. "The sea answers to you. Even here, leagues from the shore."
I swallowed, my throat dry. "I don't know how."
"No," she said softly. "You don't."
For a moment, her expression softened—just a flicker, like moonlight through clouds. Then she turned to Zoe. "Dawn training. Begin with the bow. He'll need precision before control."
Zoe nodded, her expression softening slightly as Artemis vanished into the shadows.
...
Naomi burst into my makeshift tent, her voice loud and clear in the pre-dawn silence. "Rise and shine, Jackson!" she exclaimed, her words echoing off the canvas walls.
With a swift motion, she tossed a bow at my chest, its wooden length thudding softly against my clothes. As she turned away, her eyes flicked back to me, a hint of a smile playing on her lips.
"Hey, you better not break that, okay?" she said, her voice laced with a playful warning. "I don't want to have to tell Artemis you're a walking disaster."
...
Zoe led me to the edge of the clearing, where a straw target hung between two ancient oaks. The Hunters lingered nearby, their pitying whispers sharp as thorns.
Clumsy…
Poor child…
"Nock the arrow," Zoe ordered, her voice cool and deliberate. She stood so close I could smell the pine resin on her clothes.
I fumbled with the quiver, the feathered shaft slipping through my trembling fingers. The arrow clattered to the ground. A disappointed groan rose from the other Hunters.
"Again," Zoe said, unmoved.
This time, I gripped the arrow tighter, my knuckles whitening. The nock clicked into place on the string.
"Draw."
I raised the bow, my arms shaking as I pulled the string back. The wood groaned, resisting my clumsy force.
"Stop." Zoe's hand closed over mine, her calloused fingers adjusting my grip. "You're fighting it. The bow is not a sword. You don't slash with it. You sing."
She guided my fingers to the string, her touch firm but not unkind. "Three fingers here. Draw to your cheek. Not your ear—you'll lose the angle."
The string bit into my fingertips as I pulled. My breath hitched.
"Slow," Zoe murmured, her voice low and steady. "Draw with your back, not your arms. Feel the wood breathe."
I inhaled, letting the tension build between my shoulder blades. The bow's hum deepened, resonating in my bones.
"Hold."
My arms burned. The Hunters' whispers faded into the rush of blood in my ears.
"Release."
The arrow flew wide, embedding itself in a tree trunk.
"Again."
...
By the tenth attempt, my shoulders screamed, and the target bristled with arrows—none near the center. Zoe circled me like a hawk, her dark eyes missing nothing.
"You're forcing it," she said, her voice clipped but patient. "The bow is alive. Listen to it."
"I am listening," I muttered, wiping sweat from my brow.
"No. You're shouting." She stepped behind me, her hands resting lightly on my shoulders. "Close your eyes."
I hesitated, then obeyed. The world darkened. The forest sounds sharpened—the creak of branches, the rustle of leaves, the distant rush of the river.
"Draw."
I pulled the string back, the bow's hum vibrating through my arms.
"Slower. Let the wood guide you."
The tension shifted, no longer a struggle but a conversation. The bow seemed to lean into the draw, its rhythm syncing with my breath.
"Release."
The arrow struck the target's outer ring.
"Better," Zoe said, a flicker of approval in her voice. "Again."
...
By midday, the Hunters' whispers had changed.
He's learning…
Not entirely hopeless…
With Zoe's focuses elsewhere, Naomi took it on herself to help. "You're holding your breath," she said, her tone gentler than Zoe's. "Breathe out as you release. Like this."
She mimed drawing a bow, her exhale sharp and controlled. "Try it."
I nodded, nocking another arrow. This time, I exhaled as the string slipped free. The arrow grazed the target's edge.
Naomi smirked. "See? Less disaster, more… tolerable."
Even Phoebe, the quietest of the group I interacted with, drifted closer to watch. Her freckled face gave nothing away, but her eyes tracked each shot with quiet curiosity.
A voice spoke out behind me, "You're still forcing it. The bow is not a weapon to conquer. It is a song to harmonize with."
"A what?" I muttered, blinking sweat from my eyes.
A hush fell over the camp. Artemis.
The goddess plucked the bow from my hands, her movements fluid. "You treat the wood as an adversary," she said, her voice low. "It is not. It is alive. A piece of the forest itself."
She nocked an arrow, drew, and released in one motion. The shaft split my stray arrow cleanly down the middle.
"You fight the wood," she said, handing the bow back. "You must listen to it. Feel its breath. Its rhythm. Let it guide you."
I frowned. "How?"
For the first time, something like a smile touched her lips. "Close your eyes."
I hesitated, then obeyed. The world darkened. The forest sounds sharpened—the creak of branches, the rustle of leaves, the distant rush of the river.
"Now draw," Artemis murmured.
I pulled the string back, my fingers trembling. The bow's hum deepened, vibrating through my arms.
"Do you feel it?" she asked.
I nodded. The wood seemed to pulse, alive and ancient.
"Release."
The arrow flew. When I opened my eyes, it quivered in the target's outer ring—not perfect, but closer.
Artemis nodded. "Better."
...
That night, I found Artemis by the fire. She sat apart from the Hunters, her silver eyes reflecting the flames.
"You're improving," she said as I approached.
I hesitated. "I don't feel like I am."
She gestured to the space beside her. I sat, the heat of the fire searing my damp jeans.
"You doubt yourself," she said. "A child's trait."
"I am a child."
Her gaze softened. "You are a demigod. Childhood is a luxury you cannot afford."
The words stung, but there was no cruelty in them—just the cold truth of a winter sky. Naomi told me abut my heritage, but I only learnt one real lesson from that. Being a demigod sucked.
"My mom…" I stared at the flames. "She always said I was stronger than I thought."
Artemis was silent for a long moment. When she spoke, her voice was quieter. "Mothers see what others cannot. Even mortal ones."
I glanced at her. The firelight softened her edges, making her look less like a goddess and more like… someone's sister. Someone's daughter.
"You've lost many," I said carefully. "Haven't you?"
Her fingers tightened around her bow. "The world takes much from those who love fiercely. It is the price of devotion."
The admission hung between us, fragile as a spider's thread.
"Learn this lesson well, Perseus Jackson," she said, her gaze piercing yet voice soft. "To love is to risk. To endure is to survive. And to survive…" She paused, the firelight flickering in her eyes. "…is to find new reasons to love."
...
A/N Look i said the hunters weren't going to be mean, but I'm trying to find the gap between the I-Hate-harmless-children and I-Instantly-Love-You-after-hating-men-forever. You get what I'm trying to say?
Thanks for the first comment Anonymously96: Yes I had the exact same thought pairing wise, I'll try and aim for a mother-son relationship with Percy and Artemis but it wont be instant at the least.