Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson
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Emerald Library: It is so big you can google it
Writer's Block: wttJDs62Dy
LAST TIME:
"The fleece worked far better than we expected it to. It completely healed Thalia's tree. The fleece kept working until Thalia Grace, daughter of Zeus, was revived." She said as Percy's eyes widened as he processed the words he had just heard. At that moment, the face of that punk rock girl he had met all those years ago popped into his mind.
"That's not the most important part, though." Athena suddenly continued as Percy snapped out of his thoughts and his eyes focused on her.
"We have four months until one of the big three's kids reaches the age of 16 now. Fulfilling part of the great prophecy." She finished as Percy's heart skipped a beat, and he felt a headache quickly form.
"Fuck me."
"Well… let's go inside, shall we? We have all night to discuss it after everything else is taken care of."
"... You can't just drop this sort of bomb and then demand my background info."
"We have four months for the prophecy. I've been waiting for this for years."
"..."
NOW:
THIRD PERSON POV:
"Hey… is it okay if I come in?" Percy's voice came from the door, causing Artemis to lift her head from her pillow as she glanced at the door. She couldn't help but feel the urge to flee at that moment, but Zoe's voice telling her to talk to him echoed in her mind. Over the last two weeks, she had been avoiding Percy like the plague. Unfortunately, it was time to face him now, even if she felt unprepared.
Calming her emotions a little and letting out a long breath, she sat in bed and hugged the pillow she had been lying on. Just before opening her mouth, she paused briefly before quickly fixing her frizzy hair as a slight blush crossed her cheeks. She wanted to look decent if she would be seeing him for the first time in a while.
"Come in." She managed to say as the door slowly opened, revealing the man she loved. His godly level looks and stunning features were the same as when she last saw him, yet somehow, there was a difference between now and then that added something extra to his looks. She wasn't sure what it was, but it made him even more handsome. Still, she forced her eyes to turn away and stare at the bed as he walked into the room.
"Sorry about all that. I didn't expect Athena to pop on by and take up everyone's time." He apologized as Artemis glanced up at him while he sat down on the end of the bed. Seeing his apologetic face made the knot in her stomach soften as she shrugged.
"It's okay. Seeing her stumble over her thoughts when she saw me was priceless. If Hera had been here, I am sure she would have fainted. How is she doing, by the way? Did you guys all finish your talk?" She asked him as Percy rubbed the back of his head while thinking.
"We are all good. Any questions I had for her have been asked and answered. I can fully trust her with Mom now. Her intentions are pure, and it helps that the river of love has connected the two as soulmates. Right, you don't know, I unlocked more domains. They were all from Eros… I can see bits and pieces in the river of love now. I also can decipher emotions regarding love and desire a little better." He quickly explained that Artemis blinked in surprise as she was caught off guard by the sudden info dump. Unfortunately, Percy didn't allow her to process the info as he continued speaking.
"Anyways, Cammy and Cally still need to talk with Athena about her brainchildren. They both seem to see it differently from how Athena sees them, at least from what I could tell. Thankfully, they managed to shelve that for another time. I hope they can talk it out without anything bad happening between them." Percy said with a long sigh. Artemis slowly nodded in understanding as she processed the information about the domains and what he had just said. She had thought of the same thing when she learned about Athena dating Cally: brain children were still your children even if they weren't born the normal way.
"Other than that… the goddess seemed to have an information overload when things ended. She is on the couch with an ice pack on her forehead, trying to cool her head down. When you learn about my entire background, me inheriting primordial domains, the river of love, and who my soulmates are, it turns out to be way too much, even for her. Vesta, Hestia, Cally, and Cammy are tending to her." He finished as Artemis couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.
"Wouldn't that just worsen her condition? After all, Hestia and Vesta are part of the cause of her overthinking." She pointed out as Percy nodded in agreement.
"I am well aware, but those two don't realize that. I figured it would be best to leave them as is and just go with the flow. If Athena calms down and processes more info, they are the best ones to answer any questions." He said as Artemis raised her eyebrow before shrugging. There wasn't much she could do to help. Her presence would just make it even more difficult for the wisdom goddess.
"She'll be fine. I give it three hours before she cools down and is back up again, asking questions about the whole thing to get more answers." Artemis said as Percy couldn't help but nod in agreement. With that, the room grew silent. The two soulmates couldn't help but stare at one another, and Artemis hugged her pillow harder.
"So… may I ask what is going on? After what happened on the beach… things have been weird between us." Percy finally broke the silence with the question that had been plaguing him for days now. He thought things were going great between them, but things seemed awkward after Hyperion showed up. Upon hearing him speak, Artemis felt her heart race; a hurricane of emotions tormented her mind for several moments before she managed to calm down.
"I… was, no. I am still angry at you," Artemis admitted while squeezing her pillow, so much so that it looked like it was about to burst. Seeing such a sight, Percy decided to remain quiet. Artemis tried to calm down a little before glaring daggers at him with her shining yellowy silver eyes.
"The way you reacted when Hyperion nearly killed you was not… acceptable. I thought you had died. I thought the man I loved had been pierced through and killed right before me, right under my very nose. The emotions I felt right then were awful. I never want to experience those things again." Artemis started strong as her anger-laced words dug into Percy's mind like a knife, and he felt a sense of guilt begin to form in him. However, he remained quiet as the goddess continued.
"The moment I heard your voice, all my worries vanished. I felt so relieved that I wanted to cry, run over, hug, and m- maybe even kiss you. But you treated the situation like it was… nothing. Your life was nearly taken from you! But you shrugged it off like it was a joke." Each word she said made Percy grow guiltier as he started to understand what she was saying. In the past, Zoe pointed out the same thing Artemis was talking about: the joking or unserious attitude he developed when he was in extreme danger.
"It sounds stupid, but I felt like my feelings were snubbed. It was almost like my worries and concerns about your safety didn't matter." Artemis said as her angry tone began to crack apart. Percy saw those fierce eyes grow watery, and her emotions spilled over.
"I know… this is how you treat things sometimes. I've seen you do it dozens if not hundreds of times. I thought I was used to it. But after we kissed… I started to feel differently about it. I know it sounds stupid and selfish after all we have been through. I also know you can't simply read my mind and know what I want. But couldn't you acknowledge my concern for your well-being?" Artemis poured out her emotions as tears started falling from her eyes, and the guilt he felt exploded inside him.
Her eyes slowly turned to his, and Percy felt his heart clench. Seeing those worried silver eyes covered in tears made him stand up and move closer to her. Artemis' only reaction was to hide her face behind her pillow as two large arms wrapped her up in a hug. The pillow absorbed her tears, but her sniffles still escaped as Percy hugged her. Artemis felt anger and sadness in that moment, but instead of moving away, she stayed put for once. Allowing her soulmate to comfort her as his arms pulled her closer.
"It isn't stupid or selfish of you to think that way. If you had been in that same position and reacted like I did, I wouldn't be happy either. I love you, Artemis. If my concern for your well-being was brushed aside… I'm sorry." He said as Artemis' sniffles slowed while she listened to his words.
"I'm sorry I made you feel that way. I never meant to ignore your concerns or worries about me. I know an apology won't make up for the past. I'll do whatever I can to make it up to you. But if something like that happens again, I promise not to treat the situation lightly. My life isn't mine alone anymore. Zoe kept pointing out the very same bad habit. I thought I had been progressing, but it seems I haven't. I'm sorry I made you feel this way." Percy whispered before leaning down and kissing the top of her head, making the goddess shiver a little before calming down.
"You better be sorry. Also, I'm still angry at you." Artemis quietly grumbled before one of her hands found his side, giving him a slight pinch and reprimanding him for his actions. On the other hand, Percy winced as the 'slight' pinch felt like it would leave a large bruise. Ignoring the pain, Percy kissed the top of Artemis' head a few more times as the goddess continued to grumble incoherent words into her pillow.
"Just tell me how to make it up to you, and I will. Also, I felt like there was something else on your mind. May I ask what it is?" Percy asked as Artemis paused momentarily before letting a large sigh into the pillow.
"Zeus is stupid!" Artemis claimed angrily after finally pulling her head out of the pillow and revealing her slightly puffy eyes that didn't match her fierce expression.
"I could have told you that," Percy said as Artemis gave him a deadpan expression before rolling her eyes at him.
"Move your butt. If you wanna make me feel better, then cuddle me." Artemis quickly demanded, much to Percy's surprise. Before he knew it, his back was to the headboard with a few pillows behind him. A moment later, the goddess of the hunt plopped herself down into his lap with her back to him. Percy didn't even have time to blink before Artemis grabbed his arms and wrapped them around her as she got in a comfy position.
The room remained silent for a little while as Artemis relaxed into Percy's arms as the seconds passed. With his warmth permeating her back and the feeling of his arms wrapped around her again, she felt like she was in heaven. The embarrassment she normally felt in such situations was gone, leaving only the light, fluffy feeling of love behind. On the other hand, Percy enjoyed the cuddling as he brought the goddess closer to him, the sweet smell of berries and the forest tickling his nose as he tried not to sniff her too much. Not that she minded.
'We should do this more often. We only ever cuddle the others and never him… you should demand he cuddle us every night as repayment.' Diana chimed in as Artemis couldn't help but consider the idea momentarily. Taking a few more moments to enjoy his body wrapped around hers, Artemis finally sucked in a breath and let it out as she started to speak.
"After returning from the quest for the fleece, I met with Zeus. I told him what happened on the quest, leaving out our parts. After explaining everything to him, I was tasked with tracking down the humans that began summoning tribulations all over America and reporting everything back to Olympus. Thanks for the extra work, by the way." Artemis complained in her adorable, complaining voice until she said the last part, causing Percy to freeze.
"Again, sorry. I had no clue that provoking a tribulation and ascending would cause the whole limiter on humanity to unseal." He mumbled slightly apologetically, causing Artemis to stare at him before shrugging. She knew that he had never intended to undo the seal on tribulations. Yet the images of his tribulation in her mind were still fresh in her mind, the scene of his charred body after each lightning strike. She couldn't help but forgive him… at least a little.
"It isn't entirely your fault. You didn't know this would happen, and neither did I. I guess you can even say this is the god's fault in the first place for putting the seal on humans. Regardless, I returned to Olympus after locating all the humans and determining if they were evil or good. This is when things get stupid, all because of my outstanding performance. Zeus has given me the task of monitoring or taking out any enlightened humans." She growled as she squeezed Percy's hand in her anger, only for him to give her three squeezes back. Feeling those three squeezes let her calm down a little.
"I don't see how that is too awful. Aren't you used to hunting duties?" Percy couldn't help but ask her. This caused Artemis' eyes to flicker with complicated feelings before she glanced up at him. Seeing his soft gaze, she couldn't help but sigh lightly before burrowing herself deeper into his arms.
"Yes, but that isn't the point. It means… My duties have changed. It is no longer my job to follow you and the quest members. Zeus is currently trying to find another god to fulfill my role. More than likely, it will be someone he trusts a lot." Artemis finally said quietly as Percy blinked in surprise, not expecting the news she had just delivered. After a moment, Percy couldn't help but suddenly chuckle.
"You are too cute," Percy said, causing Artemis to blink in surprise before Percy suddenly leaned down and planted a soft kiss on her lips, stunning the goddess. Her cheeks instantly turned bright gold as embarrassment flooded her mind. She simply didn't expect this reaction from him.
"Y- You can't suddenly kiss me like that! I need to be prepared! Also, that isn't the point. What if-." Artemis tried to talk to Percy, but he moved faster than she could speak. He was sealing her lips once again. One of his hands even found itself on her hot cheek, holding the blushing auburn-haired goddess in place as the two kissed.
'Keep talking. I wanna see how many times he kisses you before you stop.' Diana teased lovingly as Artemis pushed the embarrassing goddess to the back of her head. Yet even in her flood of emotions, the goddess couldn't help but enjoy the kiss for a few moments before pulling away from Percy's soft lips with a flushed face.
"Don't worry, I'll be alright even if you're not the one on the quest with me. I can just play the role of the awesome Ranger of Olympus and get the job done no matter what God is following me. I'm sure Zeus will send someone capable of protecting me properly. After all, he doesn't want to lose his best weapon against the Titans." Percy said as Artemis puffed up her cheeks in annoyance. How dare he silence her with a kiss! Yet she couldn't help but agree with his words… only a little though.
"Also, I'll make sure we make up all the alone time we would have gotten on the quests after I'm done," Percy suddenly whispered into her ear. The goddess froze in place as her blush covered her whole face. Seeing her reaction, Percy kissed her cheek one last time, causing the goddess to let out a puff of steam.
"S-Shut up!" Artemis yelled as she hit Percy's chest lightly, causing the man to laugh heartily. Seeing his reaction, the goddess' face grew more embarrassed before her form suddenly shifted. In a single moment, the Artemis, clad in a baggy shirt and pajamas, was replaced with Diana in full leather armor with her hair pulled back into a ponytail. Percy and the Roman goddess couldn't help but stare at each other in surprise. A light blush crossed Diana's cheeks as her silver eyes turned away from Percy's. She slowly pulled her hands back from Percy's chest, where Artemis had left them.
"I-It seems the doe scampered away in embarrassment. That is so like her," Diana said with a slight chuckle as she tried to figure out what to do. One part of her looked like she would run out the door, while the other seemed reluctant to go. Thankfully, Percy could pick up on these emotions as he thought it over for a moment.
"Well… if you don't mind. Do you want to cuddle and watch a movie?" he asked while motioning to the TV on the wall. Diana glanced over and slowly turned her gaze back to him. Meeting his eyes, silver met spirals of colors as a smile slowly graced her lips. Before he knew it, the goddess had put her back against his chest and snuggled in as she giggled slightly.
"I never thought you would ask. I would love that."
LINEBREAK:
LOCATION: Camp Half-Blood
THIRD PERSON POV:
"You telling me I have seven years of music to catch up on?" Thalia asked excitedly as Annabeth gave her friend an awkward look as she set down the large laundry basket outside the camp's laundry room. Ever since Thalia had been magically revived by the golden fleece, things around Camp had gotten far more lively. At least, it seemed that way to her as the daughter of Zeus followed only her around.
"A lot more happened during that time than music stuff. The International Space Station opened, the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the Twin Towers, the euro became the sole currency in 12 countries, Pluto lost its classification as a planet, hurricane Katerina happened, and the iPod was released. There was a lot of stuff." Annabeth explained as Thalia stared blankly at her as if asking her, 'who cares?' causing the daughter of Athena to sigh.
"Never mind, I'll tell you about them later during your education classes Chiron set up. He seems pretty eager to teach you." Annabeth murmured as Thalia grimaced at the thought of said classes.
"Do I have to go to those with the centaur dude? Can't I just skip them and hang out with you?" The girl asked with a pleading gaze as Annabeth simply stared her down. Stern stormy gray eyes met twinkling electric blue ones as the two stared at one another for several long seconds. Those unwavering stormy eyes continued to deflect Thalia's attempts to use her puppy dog eyes on the girl. Eventually, Annabeth couldn't help but roll her eyes as Thalia continued to plead with her.
"Yes, you do have to go. No matter how much you hate them. We can't just release a… punk rock teenager with lighting powers from 2000 back into the wild. Etiquette and a few other things have changed since then. You need to be a good girl and learn all the important things. Besides, I'll be with you every step of the way." Annabeth said in a matter-of-fact tone with a small smile. Thalia's begging face couldn't help but turn into an unhappy one before seemingly giving in to her fate with a sigh.
"What happened to young Annabeth, who listened to my every word," Thalia grumbled before sitting on the chair outside the laundry room next to Annabeth.
"She grew up," Annabeth couldn't help but say with a shrug as Thalia stared at her friend. The image of the young and ragged Annabeth overlapped with the short-haired beauty before her. Even though her lush golden locks had been reduced to a cute bob cut, their faces remained the same for the most part. Even those intense stormy gray eyes and constant thinking faces stayed the same.
"Did you, though? All I can see is cute Anny Bananay, who needed to cuddle with me so she could sleep at night on the road." Thalia began to tease as Annabeth blushed at Thalia's words before lightly slapping her friend's arm.
"Shut up! I was only seven back then! I'm fourteen now. I'm almost as old as you! Also, don't call me that either. It's embarrassing." Annabeth grumbled in embarrassment, causing Thalia to grin at the young girl. Before Annabeth knew it, Thalia reached up and ruffled the daughter of Athena's short hair, causing the girl to cry out in surprise. Annabeth could barely escape Thalia's hand before glaring at the daughter of Zeus.
"You may be older, but that doesn't change much. You are still Anny to me. I will say it's good to see you all grown up. I never thought I would get the chance," Thalia said with a sad smile, causing Annabeth's slight glare to falter as a wave of emotions crashed into her. The two couldn't help but sit in silence before Thalia forced the sad expression on her face away.
"At this rate, I'm going to see you turn into an old single lady buried in her work at some fancy architecture firm and only has cats as friends." She teased, causing Annabeth to stare blankly at her smirking friend.
"I think you might be talking about yourself here. Except you'll be in some band playing the guitar and held up in some bar forever, unable to stay in a stable relationship. You will probably rely on me as your only friend to support you financially since you'll probably be poor." Annabeth said, crossing her legs and giving off a confident aura. Thalia couldn't help but feel astonished by her friend's cruel future vision of her.
"You are so mean! I would be in a huge band that sells a billion albums! I would be raking in the millions, if not more! I bet I could even score a super hot boyfriend! You would be the lonely lady relying on me!" Thalia argued back as Annabeth gave her a look that seemed to say, 'Of course, sweety' while nodding a little, even going so far as to pat her shoulder, which made Thalia's jaw drop again. She couldn't help but feel the urge to punch that look right off Annabeth's face.
"To ensure your success, we must teach you about what happened over the last seven years to catch you up. We can't have a guitarist for the next big band like Fall Out Boy stuck in the past, can we?" Annabeth said with a shit-eating grin as Thalia froze under her gaze. She couldn't believe she had been lured into this conversation and tricked too easily. Seeing no way of winning this conversation, she leaned back in her chair with an angry huff, her hands stuffed into her pockets.
"Finnnnneeeee, you win. I'll go to those stupid classes… also who is Fall Out Boy?" As she admitted defeat with much regret, she couldn't help but wonder who Annabeth just spoke of. Hearing the question, Annabeth grew confused momentarily before suddenly realizing who she was talking to.
"Oh! That's right, they came out in 2001 with a few pretty decent songs. They are a Pop Punk band that I think you would like. Percy introduced them to me while we were training and started talking about you. He also showed me a few other similar songs he liked. Like the My Chemical Romance song Black Parade or American Idiot by Green Day." Annabeth explained as Thalia's curious face slowly changed into one of surprise before awe, her sour mood taking a 180 as she nearly jumped right out of her seat.
"Wait, wait, wait… are you telling me that Green Day released more music? Also, who the heck is My Chemical Romance? They sound awesome! Wait, don't answer that! Are you telling me that little squirt has good musical taste? Where the heck is he? Is he around? I need a rundown of the last seven years' music asap!" Thalia rattled off words as fast as she could, causing Annabeth to lean back in surprise as Thalia got closer and closer to her. Before she knew it, Thalia's face was right before hers as she tried not to fall from her chair.
Those two sparkling electric blue eyes were full of excitement and wonder. Annabeth couldn't help but blush as she looked right into them. Thalia was simply too close for comfort. One wrong move, and there was an 80% chance that disaster would happen. Annabeth barely managed to reach up and a hand and push her friend back a little. Suddenly realizing how close she was, Thalia couldn't help but blush a little and entirely pull away as she turned her head the other way, hiding her face.
"S-Sorry, I got a little too excited," Thalia mumbled as the two tried to push away the embarrassment in the air as Annabeth steadied her rapidly beating heart. After a minute or so, both girls couldn't help but turn back to face one another, and Annabeth decided to speak first.
"Percy isn't here at the moment. Also, he isn't really… little anymore." Annabeth said as Thalia raised an eyebrow at her.
"Duh, I know that much. He was around your age, so he is 14 now. But he looked a little older than his age when we met, so I'm betting he looks about 16 now." Thalia said while tilting her head side to side, causing her pixie cut to sway about. Annabeth couldn't help but purse her lips together as the image of Percy entered her thoughts. His extremely handsome smile came to mind as a blush crossed her cheeks.
"Well… you're not wrong. He looks older. But not in the way you're thinking," She said as Thalia gave her an awkward look. Yet upon seeing a subtle blush cover her cheeks, the daughter of Zeus slowly revealed a toothy smile.
"Oh my, oh my, does little Anny have a crush?" Thalia asked as Annabeth's eyes darted to her friends before her whole face grew redder. Seeing that shit-eating smile on her lips stirred up her emotions as she realized what she was thinking.
"W- What? No!" Annabeth tried to hide her emotions but quickly failed. Thalia's smile turned to a grin as the girl scooted closer to her friend.
"Come on, girl. Give me the details." Thalia said with wiggling eyebrows as Annabeth couldn't take it and stood up. She quickly rushed to the laundry basket before running inside the room. Thalia couldn't help but roll her eyes at her friend's antics before snickering a little. Waiting for the silly girl to return, Thalia couldn't help but try to imagine the boy who Annabeth was blushing over. The image of Percy popped into her mind as she attempted to imagine him older but simply failed to.
"Hello." Just then, a voice disrupted her thoughts. Thalia quickly turned her gaze to the figure before her as she froze. The most handsome man she had ever seen was standing right before her. He looked barely 20 years old and had a slight grin on his stupidly hot Greek/American face framed by wavy obsidian black hair. His jawline was perfectly chiseled and covered with a small amount of stubble. Even his eyes were stunning, each iris spinning around like small galaxies with sparking stars.
He wore a tight-fitting blue V-neck shirt that said, 'I'm not procrastinating. I'm doing side quests', which did little to hide his perfect figure. Each muscle she could see was… defined and striking. His arms were especially defined, and each had several large veins running underneath his skin. Complete with a green set of loose-fitting cargo pants, he may have had a casual look, but to Thalia, it was anything but casual. Just staring at him made her face heat up while he flashed his pearly white teeth at her.
"H- H- Hi!" Thalia barely managed to squeak out and reply, only for her to scream at herself internally at her stutter. She and Annabeth had just been talking about boys, and suddenly, this 11 out of 10 came over, catching her wholly unprepared as she felt her face turn red hot. She was wearing the lame Camp Half-Blood shirt and some baggy pants, and she wasn't even wearing makeup!
"It's good to see you again after such a long time. When I heard you revived, I had to see it myself. How are you feeling?" He said happily while Thalia tried to get her brain to work but failed miserably. She tried to cool down her face and not stare too much, but her cheeks grew hotter, and her eyes lingered on him long. It didn't matter if he was a little older; hot was hot, and he was totally her type.
"Y-Yeah, I'm g-good! Fit as a fiddle! Haha! So this weather, right? Isn't it hot out here? Are you hot? I mean, you are hot, but…" Thalia started to ramble while waving her hands but quickly shut her mouth as embarrassment flooded her mind. All she wanted to do was curl up into a ball and disappear as she felt his eyes linger on her. What made it worse was the man gave her a small, knowing smile. Oh god, he heard what she said! Was there a possibility she could turn back into a tree again and forget this ever happened?
"It is a little warm, I suppose. Anyways, I'm surprised to see you all alone. Did Annabeth leave you stranded? I figured you two would be glued to the hip." He said as Thalia contemplated her disappearance from this world with a completely red face.
"Alright, Punk Rock 2000, let's get going. I have more chores to do." Annabeth said while exiting the room before looking at her stunned friend. Her face grew confused as she saw Thalia's blushing and embarrassed expression, only for her to turn her head and lay eyes on the grinning male before the two of them.
"Percy!" Annabeth happily yelled as she rushed to the man and quickly wrapped him up in a hug. Percy couldn't help but wrap the girl up in a hug as well, and the two shared a joyful moment for several long seconds before Annabeth finally released him after recharging her Percy meter.
"I can't believe you're here! I was just about to send you an Iris message! Something amazing happened!" Annabeth explained with pure joy and excitement as she grabbed his hands and bounced up and down. Seeing her so full of happiness brought a smile to his face. He couldn't help but reach up and ruffle her hair, causing her to roll her eyes before swatting away his freed hand.
"Don't mess up my hair. Also, Thalia is back! She's alive!" Annabeth nearly squealed in enjoyment as she turned to present the embarrassed, freckled-faced girl. Yet Thalia was still too embarrassed to process the information provided to her about Percy. All she could do was stare at the two as they gave her a curious stare.
"I think you broke her," Annabeth whispered as Percy raised an eyebrow. All he could think back to was Thalia's embarrassed rambles.
"How is it my fault? I just showed up and said hello. I couldn't even say who I was before you showed up," Percy said, and Annabeth looked at him deadpan, as if not believing him.
"You say that even when you know how you look?" She said as Percy paused before realizing what she was getting at.
"Are you saying my… hotness stunned her?" He questioned with a small, knowing grin as Annabeth's cheeks lit up with a faint blush. Just then, she realized she was still holding his hand. She quickly let go of it and rushed toward her stunned friend.
"No! Of course not! I meant that you look way different than you did back then! Isn't that right, Thalia?" Annabeth tried to save herself but failed miserably as Thalia's mind finally seemed to snap back into reality.
"W-Wait! You're Percy?" Thalia's shocked voice filled the air as her mouth hung wide open. Percy simply nodded towards the punk rock teen as she stared at him in shock.
"B-But you were so little and… dorky," Thalia said while motioning to him as Percy nodded.
"Seven years have passed since then, so I have grown. Well, at least for ordinary people. I went through some things and grew older much faster. Also, I don't know what you mean by dorky. I was a cook kid." Percy said as Thalia looked to Annabeth for answers, only to find her nodding to Percy's words.
"Time warp traps are weird," Annabeth said as Thalia blinked at her friend in disbelief before looking at Percy again. Finally, the pieces slowly fell into place, causing her to let out a long sigh while rubbing her eyes.
"I need some time to wrap my head around this," Thalia mumbled, causing Percy to laugh as she looked up at him.
"Says the girl who turned into a tree and then back into a human." He said playfully as Thalia stared at him momentarily before gazing at Annabeth.
"Is he always this annoying?"
"Almost always."
"Hey!"
"Percy, you're not helping."
"But-."
"Hush, Percy. Thalia, are you okay?"
"Yeah, just a bit of a headache."
"Do you need to lay down?"
"I think so. This is just too much all at once."
"I can heal her if you want."
"Not helping Percy. I'm sure you have something else you might be able to do for a bit. Let's meet back up when Thalia is feeling better. Now, let's get you to the medical bay." Annabeth said, helping a slightly pale Thalia stand as the two walked away. Leaving behind a stunned Percy, all he wanted to do was say hi to Thalia again, and before he knew it, he was in trouble.
"This is dumb." Percy sighed as he rubbed his forehead and followed the two with his eyes.
"Well, she has been through a lot lately. It must all be finally catching up to her. Give her some time; she will be right as rain." A voice said to his right, causing him to turn to see a familiar Centaur who appeared out of nowhere. Even with his senses dozens if not hundreds of times more sensitive than an average demigod, Percy could still not sense Chiron's arrival. All he could do was look up at the middle-aged face of the legendary hero trainer in wonder.
"I still have no clue how you do that. You have got to tell me one of these days." Percy said as Chiron ran a hand over his beard and revealed a widening smile.
"Some secrets aren't meant to be shared, my boy. Besides, where would the fun be in that?" He teased Percy, who couldn't help but roll his eyes. He had a feeling he would never manage to get Chiron to tell him how he did it.
"One day, old man. I'll figure you out. Also, I think you are right. From what I could sense, Thalia's emotions were everywhere before I said hello. I was just the super hot fellow who threw her barely maintained equilibrium out of whack." Percy said confidently at the end as Chiron gave him a disappointed look.
"Even if you might be a bit handsome, one must try and hold back their arrogance. It is not a good look for you. Besides, she is not feeling well; now is not the time to brag about making things harder for her." Chiron chastised Percy, causing his face to twitch a little. He couldn't even retort back since he knew Chiron was right.
"You sound like Hestia," Percy mumbled as Chiron beamed him a smile of delight.
"I'll take that as a compliment. Someone has to keep you in check when nobody is around. Now, Mr. D has a few things to talk with you about. Some changes have been made to questing details, and he is supposed to relay them to you. If Artemis hasn't already." Chiron whispered while eyeing Percy with a tiny shimmer in his eyes.
"She mentioned a few things after coming home but didn't want to discuss it much. It seems the wine fellow has more information on the details," Percy said with a slight shrug, and Chiron gave a soft nod.
"Well, I will leave it to you. Also, give Thalia a day or so before you talk to her. The girl has been through quite a bit lately. Give her some time. I'm sure she would be delighted to speak with you again. Especially about your… interesting taste in music. What was it called again? Hip hopping? Punking Rock? Music was so much simpler back in my day." Chiron said in a wise tone that Percy completely agreed with, before suddenly shifting to an old man as he tried to talk about music.
SIGH
"Chiron, we've talked about this before. It's punk rock, and it is amazing." Percy tried to explain to Chiron again the workings of the music industry and all the new types of music that have been coming around lately. Yet, on the other side of camp, Annabeth was busy tending to Thalia as she helped the girl sit down on the medical bed. Thalia quickly laid down and buried her face into the pillow as Annabeth's expression was filled with worry.
"What can I do to help?" Annabeth's worried voice filled the air as Thalia shuffled a bit so she could peek at her friend.
"Do you have any hot cocoa?" Thalia whispered, and Annabeth couldn't help but smile as she nodded. Annabeth then got up and disappeared, leaving Thalia on her own as the girl closed her eyes and tried to soothe her headache. So much had happened so quickly that she never got to sit down and think properly. It seems like pushing your worries and concerns into the back of your mind didn't work after all.
'Seven whole years asleep… only for me to be woken up during a war. This has fate written all over it. Why the hell did this happen to me? Couldn't they have let me sleep until this stupid war is over? I bet Zeus doesn't even care that I'm awake. I haven't heard a whisper from him since I woke up…' Thalia thought as tears began to run down her face before she hid her face in the pillow again just before she felt her chest tighten.
Hic Hic Sniffle
'Stupid! Don't cry! You're stronger than this! Don't let your stupid emotions win!' Thalia yelled at herself as she dried her tears quickly while taking a few deep breaths. Even though she managed to get her sobs under control, her tears were taking a little longer to stop. It didn't help her inner turmoil at all.
'Stupid girl, crying gets you nowhere. That's what mom would have said. Mom… is she even okay? I… I need to make sure. That stupid old woman had better be alive. I still need answers about Jason! Same with Luke, what the hell is he thinking partnering with Kronos? Even though the gods aren't the best, picking a slightly less poisonous plant from two won't work.' Thalia continued to think as she made a goal for herself, something to focus on specific topics.
Just then, a certain daughter of Athena returned with two giant mugs of piping hot cocoa and a smile on her face. Hearing her return, Thalia looked up from her pillow as a smile graced her lips. She took a moment to sit up on the edge of the bed as Annabeth joined her and then handed her the cup. Smelling the delicious scent of chocolate again, Thalia felt her tension ease before suddenly noticing a peculiar drink feature.
"Why's it blue?" She couldn't help but ask with a raised eyebrow, causing Annabeth to blush and reveal a shy smile.
"You know when Sally made us those cups of hot cocoa?" She asked as Thalia nodded, remembering the day she met the Jackson family. Just remembering the taste of Sally's cooking made her stomach grumble a bit.
"Well… ever since then, I haven't been able to get the taste of that cocoa out of my head. With the help of camps' magical plates and cups, it was possible to recreate it. I thought you might enjoy it." Annabeth said with a sheepish smile as Thalia slowly turned to her mug and gave it a sniff, the smell reminding her of that very cocoa.
"Well… you're not wrong. It was the best cocoa I've ever had." Thalia admitted before giving the large mug a long sip as the delicious flavor filled her mouth. Once again, she felt herself calming down until she finally managed to find herself in a stable state again. With this, she and Annabeth continued to sip their drinks silently until they were halfway through.
"Are you feeling better?" Annabeth asked, and Thalia nodded, her freckled cheeks flushed from the warmth of the drink.
"Much better. I feel like I could take on a Minatour," Thalia said, punching the air as Annabeth chuckled at her friend's antics before staring at her mug in thought.
"I'm glad, also… if you want to talk about anything, I'm here for you. I know you might not want to talk about it, but… I just want to help." Annabeth as Thalia glanced at her friend. Thoughts again filled her head. Closing her eyes to clear her mind, she let out a small sigh as she glanced at Athena's adorably cute daughter. Those stormy gray eyes were full of promise to help, and a slightly worried expression on her face.
"One step at a time, okay. I have to finish Chiron's classes first before I go anywhere. After that, I have a few places to visit and check up on a few things. Do you think… you might be up for a side quest with me. We can chat all you want as we travel." Thalia asked as Annabeth's eyes beamed in delight before nodding several times, causing Thalia to chuckle at the girl's enthusiasm.
"Sounds like we have a plan worthy of Athena." She teased as Annabeth rolled her eyes at her friend's teasing. Yet she couldn't wipe the bright smile off her lips even if she tried, her feet kicking back and forth in excitement.
"Also… why didn't you tell me Percy was all grown up and…that hot!? I made a fool of myself out there! He's going to think I'm super weird now." Thalia complained as Annabeth's smiling face froze as she looked at her blushing friend. Seeing Thalia with such an embarrassed look when talking about boys was not unheard of. Still… Annabeth couldn't help but feel slightly peeved at her words.
"I… bet he will, you little weirdo. I don't know what you said, but I bet it was super embarrassing. Also, I tried to tell you he changed, but I guess I was vague when talking about him. My baddd…" Annabeth said mischievously as Thalia seemed to crumble apart at her words and flopped onto the bed in defeat. Seeing Thalia wiggle around in defeat made Annabeth feel better as her peeved emotions dissipated.
"You are so meannnn!" Thalia whined. Annabeth smiled a little as she reached over and patted Thalia's back, causing the girl to stop squirming in bed. Glancing up at Annabeth with a flushed face, Thalia couldn't help but puff out her cheeks in annoyance. Her once bad-to-the-bone punk rock teen persona was nowhere to be seen in these moments.
"He's the one you like, right? I saw that hug you two shared. It's a bit too long for just friends but short enough to be in a relationship. I didn't know you were the type to go after older men." Thalia said while sitting up as Annabeth's eyes widened immensely, and her face turned red.
"T-That's not it…" Annabeth tried to lie, but seeing the expression on Thalia's face made her realize that her friend already figured her out. She simply couldn't find the words as her hands began to play with one another nervously. On the other hand, Thalia couldn't believe the reaction she got out of Annabeth with one little sentence. It seems she accidentally hit the motherload of drama button.
"It's complicated," Annabeth said with a sigh and a begging look that seemed to ask Thalia not to dig any deeper. Seeing such an expression on Annabeth's face, Thalia simply couldn't help but feel a bit of worry.
"Fine, I won't dig any deeper into your love life. But I swear on my spear. If he hurts you, he is going to get an electric boot up his ass." She threatened as Annabeth revealed a thankful look.
"Still… isn't he a bit too old for you? Is he a pedophile or something? Because if he has touched you…" Thalia said as blue arcs of electricity began to bounce around her hair. Annabeth's jaw couldn't help but drop in shock at her words.
"I-It isn't like that! We don't have that kind of relationship! We barely even hug right now."
"So he promised to wait? That is just as bad!"
"Nooo! Like I said, it's complicated! Time magic traps and all that!"
"Hmmm… I need to talk to Percy about this."
"Ughhh! Please stop!"
SMALL LINEBREAK:
ACHOO!
'Seems like someone is talking about you behind your back.' Barbatos said as Percy wiped his nose a little while glancing around. Feeling the itch on his neck, he couldn't help but agree with the knight. For now, he pushed the thought into the back of his head as he spotted the god he was looking for.
"What up, Mr. D!" Percy said enthusiastically as he walked toward the big house. Dionysus glanced up from his one-man-go-fish game and revealed a rare smile on his lips.
"Perseus, it is… good to see you, I suppose. You must be here to get a report from Olympus. It seems word travels fast." Dionysus said as Percy gave a soft shrug before plopping across from the god as the floating cards all plopped down onto the table.
"Hermes does love sending my mail as fast as he can. Plus, I ran into a certain… exhausted goddess of the hunt while I was out and about with my kids." Percy made up a quick lie as the god raised an eyebrow.
"Artemis is back in New York, is she? She is a bit faster with her new chores than I expected." He mumbled as Percy raised an eyebrow, hearing him talk about godly duties like they were chores fit the wine god perfectly for some reason.
"Has the big man in the sky been handing out a lot of new chores for everyone?" Percy couldn't help but ask as Mr. D glanced up at Percy, his watery blue eyes swirling with thoughts before turning them back to pick up the playing cards.
"As far as I'm aware, he has been. But he is calling one god at a time. He has some big plans in mind regarding all these new tribulations…" He began to explain before stopping, realizing he just let information slip from his lips. Glancing up at Percy, he only saw a blank expression on the boy's face.
"Artemis already explained what was going on. Plus, I'm the Ranger of Olympus. Give me some credit for figuring stuff out." Percy said with a grin as Mr. D snorted out a laugh and shuffled the cards in his hands.
"Sounds fair to me, Mr. J. Anyways, back to the topic at hand, I'm here to give you an update on questing. As far as I know, Sparky has found someone instead of Little Miss Huntress to help with Quests. Who that is… I have no idea." He said as Percy's mouth twitched a little. He couldn't help but inwardly curse Zeus for him and his stupid secrecy regarding certain things.
"So I'm just supposed to roll into these quests blind?" Percy asked as the god gave him a somewhat blank look.
"Isn't that normal for you anyway? After all our requests you go through, I thought you would be used to our nonsense by now. But… Zeus did say it was someone he could trust. That does narrow it down… a little." He said as Percy snorted at the god's words.
"Zeus trusting someone? I never thought I would see the day." Percy said while rolling his eyes as Mr. D stopped shuffling his cards and glanced up at him.
"As much as I agree with you, watch your words. At the same time, Father's decisions sometimes may not make sense. His duty to protect Olympus will always be second to none. I hate to admit it, but for a crazy family like ours, sometimes you need a ruler who is just as crazy." He said with a deep sigh as Percy couldn't help but stare at the god of madness for a moment.
"All I'm hearing is our family is crazy over here," Percy said as Mr. D rolled his eyes.
"Our family dynamics are beyond your mortal comprehension. Immortality makes a lot of things dull over the years. Now, are you going to play a game of go fish?" The god asked as Percy glanced at the cards and shrugged.
"Only if you are betting some of your wine."
SMALL LINEBREAK:
"This is weird," Tracy mumbled as she chewed on the end of a pencil while staring at a pile of sheet music. This one piece of music had stood out to her the most as she sorted through the many bits and pieces of songs she had written down.
"What is weird?" Phoebe asked from her spot on the ground where she was currently stretching and doing some yoga to ensure she was in tip-top shape. Even though Phoebe did have an impressive muscle mass for a woman, she still enjoyed the limberness that came with thousands of years of yoga practice. Much unlike the daughter of Apollo, who had mild back problems from her constant poor posture as of late. Said girl appeared like an obsessed ring-seeking creature from Lord of the Rings, which didn't help.
"It's this… thing. Can you come over and take a look?" Tracy asked as Phoebe slowly finished her stretch before pulling herself off the ground and walking over. Leaning over the chair and resting her arms on Tracy's shoulders, she snuggled her head next to Tracy's, causing the girl to shift unconsciously toward her touch. Phoebe then peered at the pile of sheet music that had caught the girl's attention for the last few days.
"What the heck is going on with that thing?" Phoebe asked in slight amazement as she stared at the sheet music. The white paper Tracy had used before was long gone. The paper had turned pitch black with golden fantasy-like designs and markings around the edges. Glowing musical notes and words appeared and disappeared frequently on the red lines on the pages before them. There was no rhythm to the changes. It was complete chaos on the paper as she was drawn into the rhymeless changes for several long moments.
"I don't know. I was working on piecing a particular song together that didn't make any sense. It was like piecing together a puzzle with no edges, end, or beginning. Or like trying to write a song from the middle outwards. Whenever I found a word that fits in the next moment, it didn't. I fell into a trance at some point, and when I came to… it was like this." Tracy said while nibbling harder on her pencil as Phoebe stared at the magical pieces of sheet music.
"Did it just… randomly change?" Phoebe asked while trying to recall what had happened in the last few hours. No unique signs or changes occurred when something magical typically happened. Instead, the day seemed dull and more plain than usual, almost like when this thing came into being, it didn't want to be found. With her vast years of experience, godly and human, it simply made no sense to the huntress.
"I can't remember." Tracy shook her head and tried to recall a few things, but she still couldn't. With that, the two couldn't help but gaze back at the mystical sheets of music in wonder. Tracy couldn't help but think back to what Percy said about her possible powers for the gift of prophecy. Yet this thing didn't seem like any type of power of prophecy she had ever seen or heard of. Even if her gift was a bit different, this was too much.
"Do you at least have an idea of what it does?" Phoebe asked as Tracy stared at the music sheets before slowly reaching out and touching them gently. Both expected the sheets to do something, yet nothing happened. Taking a moment, Tracy carefully gathered the music sheets and piled them together. The moment she did, the sheets glowed a gentle black light in her hands. Tracy nearly dropped it in surprise but held back as the glow dissipated a second later. What was left was a simple black book with the design of a simple music note on the front.
"That's interesting," Tracy whispered, observing the new black book in her hands. Phoebe, on the other hand, looked ready to throw the book away but held back on the account that Tracy was unharmed by it.
"I think…" Phoebe started to speak but stopped as she noticed a change in the book as words began to appear on the cover. After a few seconds, the words finally finished appearing as the two girls eyed the title.
"TikTok by Kesha? Is that a song?" Phoebe asked as Tracy suddenly began to shake, her eyes beamed with a newfound light.
"No way! This is amazing! I only thought about the most popular song in a few years!" Tracy said while turning to Phoebe as she nearly jumped up and down in excitement. The girl quickly turned back toward the music book that held infinite possibilities. She couldn't even begin to imagine how incredible it was, an item born from her music and clairvoyant powers. It was more than she could ever ask for.
"That's amazing," Phoebe whispered as she eyed the book in wonder. Tracy began to play with it as her smile grew.
"All it takes is some of my aura to activate as well," Tracy said as the book's title began to change to another song named Uptown Funk by Bruno Mars. Tracy then opened the book as the lyrics and music notes for the song appeared inside. Quickly reading through the song, Tracy was pulled into a world of wonder as she could play the song in her head due to her musical talent. She might not have been able to hear the singer's voice, but this was a song from the future. That alone was incredible. Just then, an idea flashed into her mind as she closed the book and focused.
'Give me the most popular song of the year 2035.' This thought passed through her head as Tracy focused with all her might. Tracy suddenly felt a tingle on her neck as her whole body stiffened. Like a veil of death had cloaked her.
The book shone a brilliant hue of gold in the next instant, and then Tracy felt her aura being absorbed by the book at an incredible speed. It was so fast that Tracy felt like her veins were on fire, and she let out a blood-curtailing scream as she collapsed to the ground. Her body spasmed as she tried to let go, but she found her hands locked into place by the book as she continued to scream.
Phoebe acted in an instant. She quickly reached out and grabbed the book to throw away, but she found Tracy's hands stuck to it. Her eyes widened as Tracy continued to let out a scream of pain she had never once heard from her. Even when Tracy's aura reserves were drained dry, the book absorbed everything from her. Phoebe watched in shock as Tracy's face began to bleed from every orifice it had. The blood in her throat temporarily silenced the girl's screams.
"NO!" Phoebe screamed as she used all her might to pull the book away from Tracy, even going so far as to put her foot against the girl's chest and use every ounce of her strength to save the girl. The huntress' efforts were not in vain. Each of Tracy's fingers broke with a sickening snap, but finally, the book was removed from her grasp. The two girls flung apart as Phoebe threw the book across the room before rushing to Tracy's side.
"Oh, gods." Phoebe's panicked voice filled the room as she embraced Tracy. The girl seemingly had one foot in the grave as she coughed up large amounts of blood. Phoebe acted quickly as she gently laid the girl back onto the ground on her side and rushed to the kitchen to send an IM to her goddess. As this happened off in the corner of the room, the book was laid with several fading words on its cover. Tracy could glimpse at them even in her state as they faded to nothing, just like her consciousness.
Hallelujah, the Emperor has Risen.
A/N: That's a wrap! I know… I'm evil. Yes, I know. I hope you all enjoyed the chapter. It has a bit of everything in it, including one of the best girls Thalia! We can finally get the ball rolling on the Thalia train that will eventually run off the rains! I hope you enjoyed how I wrote her in this one. I tried my best here but I feel I nailed it. Also, in the next chapter, you finally get to see… not telling! Hehe! Anyway, I hope you all enjoy it! Leave a review so I know how I did.
E/N: Wassuhhhhhh look I know I keep popping up here instead of working on Sun's Flaw and I am sorry but editing is so much better and faster than writing, but ya boy recently got a new job so hopefully it'll give me more time to actually LIVE! Wooooo! - Sidus