Harry waved at the rising sun, and smiled when it winked back at him. Drawing a breath, he closed his eyes, and got into a narrow horse stance. He'd done this exercise off and on for the last month or so, and was getting pretty good at it.
He sunk back on his heels, and released his body. Time and effort and physical discomfort flowed away, and Harry's mind was nothing but a sea of black. Quiet Standing was an exercise before he could start the next portion of the Martial Arts text Bai had given him. Energy Work. It sounded exciting.
"Harry?"
The sudden jarring sensation of being brought back down to earth made him stumble out of his stance, only catching himself the barest moment before literally falling to the ground.
He blinked at his all-time favorite goddess. "Hestia?" he asked, wondering. "Where did you-" he broke off his question when the realized that the sun had gone. He stared at the empty sky, and spun around, looking for it.
It had shifted considerably, and he found it nearly above Helios' Temple.
"What?" he asked, blinked at it.
He heard Hestia laugh softly. "You look so surprised," she said, standing next to him as he stared at the sun.
"What time is it?" he asked.
Hestia laughed, softly, again. "2 in the afternoon," she replied. "I came over for lunch, but you seemed engaged so I left you. When you didn't seem like acknowledging me any time soon, I decided to call you."
Harry gaped. Suddenly, he legs felt like lead, and he stumbled again. This time, Hestia needed to catch him. Her laughter vanished, and she looked quite worried.
"I've been Standing since 8 am," he told her. "And I didn't even realize."
Hestia still looked worried and helped him to a nearby bench. He went on, "I had just drifted off, and time turned meaningless," he explained.
Hestia didn't look like she understood, but nodded regardless. A plate of food appeared in her hand, and she held it out to him. "Here, eat," she instructed. "I'm glad you're alright, but you may not want to do that again."
Harry nodded. "Not alone, anyway," he said. "I don't know how long I could have stood there if you hadn't come along and woke me up."
The Goddess of the Home didn't look convinced, but nodded slowly anyway.
The food was marvelous, as it always was, and the ambrosia content made his legs tingle as they healed from the damage he'd done to them.
When he finished his late lunch, Hestia shoved a plate holding a piece of chocolate cake in his hands. He didn't need encouragement, and the cake vanished.
"Thanks, Hestia," he said, quietly.
The Goddess of the Hearth smiled in her usual gentle fashion. "You're quite welcome," she said. "Can you tell me what you were doing?"
"It's an exercise from the Martial Arts book," Harry said, feeling exhausted all of a sudden. "It's called Quiet Standing. You're supposed to meditate, and disconnect your mind from your body. When you're good at it, you can Stand for hours, and it goes by like seconds. Which is what I think happened to me."
"That's… good?" Hestia offered.
Harry nodded excitedly. "It is. It means I get to try working with energy next."
"Oh?" she asked, encouraging him.
Harry just nodded. "It depends on the next exercise, though. Only one in ten thousand can do it, apparently," he said.
Hestia hm-ed thoughtfully, and the conversation lapsed into comfortable silence. She waited a few minutes to see if Harry would talk more about his mysterious exercise, but when it became clear that he wouldn't, she decided it was time to address the elephant in the room.
"How are you feeling after the revelations regarding your mother?" she asked, gently.
Harry drew a deep breath, and sighed it out in a lengthy fashion. "It was a big shock," he finally said. "But you're right. I don't know her, and I should get to know her." He smiled faintly. "It does mean I have family now," he added.
"Yes, you do," Hestia agreed, smiling faintly.
"If Mister Hermes is my grandfather, does that mean you're my grandaunt?" Harry asked, softly, shyly looking away.
Hestia laughed softly. "I am Hermes' aunt. That means I am your great-grandaunt," she correctly gently, leaning closer to him.
"Great-grandaunt," Harry repeated. "That makes you sound so old," he added without an ounce of tact.
The Goddess of Home and Hearth laughed. "I am old, Harry," she said, grinning. "Just like most gods."
"Does that… does that mean I can call you Aunt Hestia?" Harry asked, tentatively, shyly looking at her.
"If you wish," the gentle goddess said, still smiling.
Harry grinned. "Our Auntie Hes?"
Hestia laughed. "If you wish," she repeated. She loved how Harry could be normal around her. It was refreshing to have a mortal around who treated her like a person, rather than an angry god.
Harry fell silent for a few moments, obviously thinking. She let him think, and occupied herself with conjuring a tea set and pouring beverages for the two of them.
"I think I'll stick to 'Hestia', if that's alright," he whispered. "You're my friend, first."
"If you wish," Hestia repeated again, still smiling. Mortals rarely enjoyed a friendship with a god, and she rather liked it.
She handed Harry a cup of tea while taking her own.
"Artie is Mister Hermes' sister, right? That would make her my grandaunt, right?" Harry asked.
Hestia nodded thoughtfully while sipping her tea. Precisely the right temperature and steeped exactly the correct amount of time, just as she liked it.
"Does that mean I could call her 'Granny'?" Harry asked.
Hestia choked on her tea, nearly spreading it over the intricate columns in the back yard of Helios' Temple. She coughed a few times to clear her lungs of hot liquid, then looked at Harry, who was staring at her with surprise at what his comment had caused.
"Artie would either laugh at you, or turn you into a furry woodland creature," Hestia answered. "Although her face would be quite funny, I would recommend against it."
Harry looked amused.
"Besides," Hestia said, "'granny' means 'grandmother', so technically, the only one you could accurately call 'granny' would be Aphrodite. And her reaction would probably be even funnier than Artie's would be."
The young boy nodded thoughtfully. "I haven't really met Miss Aphrodite yet," he said, thoughtfully. "I mean, I met her at that meeting, but I haven't seen her since."
Before Hestia could say anything else, Harry went on, switching tangents. "That also means that I'm related to Miss Hera, Miss Demeter, Mister Poseidon, and Mister Hades! I've got more great-grandaunts and great-granduncles! And I'm related to Mister Apollo, too, that's awesome!"
Hestia looked amused. "And Zeus?" she half-asked, half-said.
Harry crossed his arms. "I don't like him," he said, looking away.
The goddess laughed softly. "Again, Harry, like your mother, you don't know him, and you were rather confrontational when you first met him. You may find out that you like him if you give him a chance. He can be rather strict, and look scary, but he can also be an incredibly loyal and supportive."
Harry's shoulder dropped. "Maybe," he allowed, unable to find it in himself to go against Hestia when she recommended giving people a chance.
Someone knocked on the large double doors of the Temple of Helios. Surprised, Harry got up and walked through the large building to answer it. He wasn't expecting anyone, and those that knew him would have just popped in rather than knock.
He pulled one side of the door open. His mouth opened to say a greeting, when he recognized his visitors.
Instead of a friendly greeting, a scream escaped his lips. "HESTIA!"
The two Olympus Security soldiers froze at his unexpected scream. At the same time, Harry realized that he wasn't a scrawny and untrained little boy anymore, and that he had options.
Within moments, the Lasso had unfurled into his hands. It seemed to read his mind, and apparently eager to obey his desires, it practically leapt from his hands to tie the two guards up.
Tightly. Together. From their necks to their feet, they were trussed up like a sausage, before falling over.
Hestia appeared right next to him, worry and confusion evident on her face, and took in the situation in a single glance, before relaxing.
"What is going on?" she asked. Her voice was tight, yet as friendly as she could make it in a tense situation.
"Lady Hestia," Left Guard said. Harry tensed; it was the guard that had hit him hard enough to break two ribs last time. "Apologies for the interruption. We… ah… came to invite Harry Potter as witness for a trial." He sounded stunned, as if he couldn't believe the speed with which he had gone from top dog to tied-up at the mercy of a young mortal boy.
"What kind of trial?" Harry asked, suspicious.
"Lord Zeus has assembled the Olympian Council to sit in a hearing over Lady Tyche, Goddess of Fortune, regarding alleged breaches in the Non-interference Law, as well as allegations of International misconduct," Right Guard replied in a monotone, as if being captured and tied up was an everyday occurrence.
"As Harry is Lady Tyche's son, and her conduct was related to her meeting him and claiming him as her own, he is being called forth as material and character witness," Left Guard said, still sounding as if he had trouble processing his reversal of fortune.
Harry opened his mouth to ask another question, suddenly feeling extremely worried about his mother. Hestia beat him to it. "And Harry is expected to go alone to this trial?" she asked.
Right Guard, still unflappable, shook his head. "I am sure nobody would object to you acting as counselor, Lady Hestia," he answered.
Harry shuffled closer to her, he felt safe around the Goddess of the Home. He was still eyeing Left Guard, not trusting him one bit.
"Perhaps you should release them now, Harry? We should have a look and see what my youngest brother has cooked up this time," Hestia suggested.
Harry hesitated for a moment, before releasing the Lasso with a single tug of his wrist. It obediently opened up before curling back into the boy's hand.
"I'm glad to see it come in handy," the Goddess of the Home said, looking at the weapon.
Harry cradled it against his chest. "Are you kidding? Your Lasso is almost as awesome as you are!" For a moment, the young boy had the impression that, if weapons could purr, the Lasso would be doing so.
Hestia laughed softly, and Harry stopped cradling his weapon, before turning it back into a ring. "It's your Lasso now, Harry," she told him, softly.
Harry grinned back at her. It would always be Hestia's Lasso in his mind.
"Please, follow us," Right Guard said, sounding no different now that he was back on his feet instead of tied up on the ground.
As Harry and Hestia followed the two guards, Hestia put a comforting arm around the boy's shoulders. "Don't worry, Harry. I'm sure it's nothing. My youngest brother tends to overreact, and loves dramatics. At least we now know you're just a witness, and we have some idea on what charges your mother is facing, thanks to the Lasso's ability to compel the truth out of people captured by it."
Harry nodded. Honestly, he had forgotten about the Lasso's ability to compel truth. "Maybe I should have asked some embarrassing questions," he said quietly. The Left Guard seemed to tense, while the Right Guard, in his usual manner, ignored it. Apparently, he hadn't been quiet enough.
Hestia gave him a look of disappointment. "That would have been wrong, Harry," she said, gently, yet firmly.
The boy shrunk slightly. "Sorry, Hestia."
She smiled, and patted his shoulder. "You're still young, you'll learn yet," she stated calmly.
They lapsed into silence, and Harry was soon lost in his thoughts, wondering what was going on with his mother.
The soldiers preceded them into the Great Temple, and stopped right outside the throne room. "You are expected," Right Guard said, reaching to open the door.
"Thank you," Hestia said, gracing him with a smile. She eyed the Left Guard, who humbly dropped his head. A flash of memory came to the surface in Harry's mind, reminding him that Hestia had promised to have a talk with the man who had broken his ribs. He wondered if that chat ever happened.
Considering the man was now refusing to look at the Goddess of the Home, he would assume so.
The doors to the throne room slid open on silent hinges, and Harry swallowed. Last time he had been here, it had been the scariest moment of his life. He wasn't sure if he wanted to repeat that performance.
Hestia placed a supportive hand on his shoulder. "I am here for you, Harry," she said, giving him an encouraging smile. "Keep your head up, this time you're here as a witness, and nobody will harm you. I will make sure of it."
Harry gave her an uncertain smile in return, but nodded anyway.
"Harry, son of Tyche," Left Guard announced as they crossed into the room. "And his counselor, Lady Hestia, Goddess of the Hearth, Home, and Family, Guardian of Elpis, The Last Olympian."
Harry felt Hestia tighten up slightly, as if she were uncomfortable with the way she had been announced. For a moment, he wondered who or what Elpis was and why Hestia would be guarding him, her, or it, but that thought fled immediately.
In the center of the Throne Room stood Tyche, Goddess of Fortune. For a few moments, he didn't recognize her, before remembering that she didn't normally look like Lily Potter.
"Come, Harry," Hestia said, squeezing his shoulder gently. He nodded to her, and started walking again; apparently, he had stopped at the sight of his mother.
She wasn't looking very good, he had to admit to himself. At the pok… maths party, she had looked strong, with her head held high. Now she looked… defeated… somehow. Her head was bent, and she was staring down at the floor in front of Mister Zeus' throne.
Harry gave in to the urge to look around, and make eye contact with most of the gods and goddesses he was on friendly terms with. They all looked inscrutable. The two of them had obviously come in during the trial, and interrupted it, and Harry wondered for a moment why he hadn't been called beforehand.
"Harry is here to bear witness," Hestia said, stopping next to Tyche, her hand subtly indicating that he should stop walking.
"Very well," Zeus said, waving one hand, as if it were of no import. "Athena, proceed."
Athena approached; she was in her full godly form of three meters tall, and looked down at the young demigod. "Harry," she said, her tone even yet with an undercurrent of support. "In your own words, recount what happened when you first met Tyche."
Harry blinked, then nodded. He started to explain how he had been invited by Mister Hermes and a few of his friends, and how Tyche had been there. He recounted her reaction, how she changed into Lily Potter, then told about his interactions with her.
"So," Athena said, after he finished his tale, "you told your mother about your treatment at the hands of your previous guardians?"
He nodded. "Yes, Miss Athena."
"What was her reaction?" the goddess asked.
Harry frowned, and thought back. "She asked why I wasn't with a guy called Sirius Black, whom I've never heard of. She seemed upset, but I don't know her that well so I'm not sure. It was the first time we met."
Athena nodded again, "That's understandable. Thank you for your testimony." She then gave him a tiny smile. "Good use of the word 'whom'," she said, always the teacher.
"Thanks, Miss Athena," he answered. Hestia squeezed his shoulder again, and Harry looked surprised. Was that it? That's was all he had to do?
Hestia guided him away, and took a seat behind the thrones; apparently, this was expected, as seating was available. Others were there as well, but nobody Harry knew so he ignored them and focused on what was happening.
Athena turned back to Zeus. "Tyche discovered her son was not where she assumed him to be, heard that he had been mistreated and abandoned, and questioned why he wasn't with the guardians her mortal aspect had assigned. Obviously, this has made her angry and she decided to question the mortals herself," she said. "That is what the evidence and the testimony shows." She turned, walked to her throne, and sat down.
Zeus sat up straight, and looked the various gods in the eye for a moment. "She showed herself to a mortal, thus breaching the non-interference laws. She then proceeded to go to Moscow, thus breaching the accords we have with the Slavic pantheon, and she manipulated a domain not her own. She's guilty."
Various gods, obviously having held their tongues until now, exploded into shouts and screams. Harry shrunk; he hated shouting. Hestia's calming hand was placed on his shoulder, imparting some strength.
"SILENCE!" Zeus thundered. As God of Thunder, he was very good at it, and the room quieted.
"Brother, every one of us would have questioned the mortals in question, had we found out our children were mistreated," Poseidon snapped into the silence, obviously not as afraid of the King of the Gods as the others.
"A mother's love is powerful," Aphrodite added in with a nod.
"Plus, she did so in the guise of her deceased mortal aspect," Athena stated. "Thereby preserving the secret of our existence."
Zeus waved his hand. "None of that matters," he said.
"Yes, it does," Hera snapped. "There is a reason why we gods rarely aspect themselves. We know that those memories and personalities can show up unexpectedly. Tyche found her son where she did not expect him, years after her aspect reintegrated. It took over, as per Harry's testimony – she took on her aspect's form, and her aspect's personality."
Zeus grumbled, and seemed ready to hand-wave that as well. "Plus, she interacted with the mortals only in her aspect's form, using her aspect's name, and only verbally. She did not curse or smite anyone," Artemis added. "Which shows an admirable amount of restraint considering what was done to her son."
"Other than use a few confusion spells. Mortal confusion spells," Athena stated. "Which added to the mortal's confusion and lack of awareness of her real identity."
Zeus grumbled more.
"Bah, everyone knows I've got no love for the brats," Dionysus said, "but if someone did to one of mine what was done to Harmon, I'd do more than scare the crap out of them. Just let her go."
Zeus' face looked thundering angry. "Fine," he snapped. "The next charge is breach of the compacts with the Slavic pantheon."
Athena sighed. "Tyche was in Moscow for less than 20 minutes, during which the only thing she did was check up on a mortal couple. A mortal couple that had been the primaries responsible to the treatment of her son. She politely explained this to the Slavic representative, was given special clearance, and left quickly after ascertaining the couple in question was suffering. I don't see any cause to call this a 'breach'."
Zeus' thundering anger focused itself on Athena, who looked back stoically. "Thus the evidence shows, Father," she said when it didn't look like Zeus was about to say anything.
"She should not have been there at all!" he snapped.
"Again, would any of us do any different if it were our child?" Poseidon asked.
"Maybe not so blatantly," Athena said. "But, agreed."
Most of the gods and goddesses nodded. "So far, Tyche's only crime seems to be a lack of restraint and a lack of subtlety," Hermes said. "I vote we give her a stern talking-to, followed by an admonishment to never do it again, then let her go."
Zeus' angry face turned to his son. "Of course you would say that, Hermes. She is your daughter."
"And your granddaughter, Father," Hermes answered, trying to blatantly play on his father's emotions. Zeus' eyes narrowed, demonstrating the gambit hadn't worked.
"Fine, I can see which way the wind is blowing," the King of the Gods snapped. "Justice is in short demand today, it seems."
"There is a difference between justice and legality, Father," Athena said. "Going by the letter of the laws, you are correct. However, judging by the spirit of the laws, Tyche had reason to do what she did, and she did so in a way that hurt no-one, nor damaged our secrecy or standing."
Zeus' look showed that he didn't much care for the difference between legality and justice, and that Athena would be better off silent for a while.
"The final issue is that Tyche manipulated a domain not her own. Case in point, mine. She conjured two large bolts of lightning in her discussion with the mortal. An act which was not hers to do," the King of the Gods growled dangerously. "And on this one, I will not budge."
Poseidon looked just as angry as his brother. "Don't be a hypocrite, Zeus. If it had been Thalia Grace, for example, you would never had complained!"
"Thalia is my daughter!" Zeus snapped at his older brother.
"And Tyche is your granddaughter," Hermes repeated. "Father."
Zeus' lips bared his teeth.
"The question is – how did Tyche create these lightning strikes?" Athena asked, despite her father's earlier glare. "She is Goddess of Fortune, conjuring bolts of lightning of the size indicated should not be possible for her."
The gods and goddesses fell silent, and studied the unfortunate Goddess of Fortune, still standing in the center of the Throne Room, studiously studying her feet.
"That is a good question," Poseidon allowed. "How did you manage that?" he asked Tyche directly.
The Goddess of Fortune looked up. "As Goddess of Fortune, I rule probability. Technically, anything is possible, just highly unlikely. So, if I manipulate probability so that a bolt of lightning strikes at the opportune moment…"
"Then lightning will strike at the opportune moment," Poseidon finished with a nod.
"You used your domain to create the desired effect rather than create the effect yourself," Athena said, looking impressed. "That is highly imaginative." She looked at her father. "Father, Tyche did not manipulate your domain."
"Not directly," Zeus snapped. "I demand punishment nonetheless."
"Father, please-" Hermes started.
"You are biased," Zeus snapped at the God of Messengers.
"As are you," Poseidon snapped in defense of Hermes. "You are having this witch hunt for no reason other than Tyche is the mother of Harry Potter."
Zeus crossed his arms. "That is so not true!" he blustered.
"Husband," Hera said, "you need to let go of your anger towards a poor mortal boy."
Zeus glared at his wife, then switched his glare at Tyche. "Luckily, as it was my domain that was affected, I can rule punishment without agreement from the council!" he barked. "From this day forward, you will not talk to your son, nor will you answer his prayers," he snapped at the unfortunate goddess. "Since it seems Justice is in short supply today, this will have to do." He vanished with a clap of thunder.
"Well, that could have gone better," Poseidon sighed. He looked at the dazed Goddess of Fortune. "Tyche, I am sorry that you were drawn into this, but our esteemed King seems to have it in for young Harry."
Most of the gods and goddesses spoke a few words with the upset Goddess, before vanishing as well.
"Mom?" Harry asked, after most of the gods had left.
Tyche managed a smile, and opened her mouth to say something, when she grabbed her throat, her face grimacing.
"You have been ordered not to speak with Harry," Hestia said, sadly. Tyche nodded. Looking sadly at Harry, she opened her arms.
Harry threw himself at her. Last time, he had been too stunned to do anything other than hug her, but this time he was determined to remember every moment of it. If he wasn't going to see his mother again, then he would make sure he remembered this moment.
Hugging her felt like everything and anything was possible, everything that should, would and could happen just outside of his reach.
Tyche held him, and patted his back. It felt different, Harry thought, hugging her as Lily Potter and hugging her as Tyche. "I'm sorry, Mom," he whispered into her shoulder.
Tyche made to say something, and grabbed her throat again. "Lady Hestia," she said, hesitatingly. Now that she apparently could speak without pain, she added, "Can you tell Harry-" she grunted as the curse struck her.
Hestia was suddenly there, right next to them. "Your mother is trying to say that this isn't your fault, Harry," the kindhearted Goddess of the Home translated.
He looked up from the embrace, and looked at his mother, in her Tyche form. Her real form, he would have to accept it. She was Lily Potter, but she was more than just Lily Potter, too. "I'm still sorry Mister Zeus is a jerk," he said.
Tyche managed a small smile, then released him. She looked at Hestia, and some silent communication passed between them. The Goddess of the Home placed a hand on Harry's shoulder, and was just about to guide him away, when Hermes reappeared, glancing furtively left and right.
Seeing no-one else, he hurriedly approached them.
"Tyche, sometimes it doesn't pay to be out of bed," he muttered. "I don't know what Father has against Harry, but this was a farce." He looked around again, and still not seeing anyone else, went on. "Every curse has two triggers. The first one is the obvious one. It's the one people tend to focus on. The second one is the one that will let you bypass the curse. In this case, the first trigger is 'your son'. You can't talk to your son nor answer his prayers. The second one will let you get around the curse. The second trigger is 'talk'. So – don't talk. Write. Or try using sign language, but that one's fifty-fifty." He grinned. "Hermes express is very good at delivering letters," he hinted, still grinning.
Tyche looked at her father, blinked, snapped her fingers, and created a blank piece of paper and a ballpoint pen. Using her amused father's back as a surface, she wrote a quick message, then handed it to Harry.
He read it, grinned, accepted the ballpoint pen and the use of an equally amused Hestia's back, and wrote an answer before passing it to his mother, who started laughing.
The Goddess of Fortune clamped her arms around her father within moments. "Thank you, Father."
"Just doing my best for my daughter and grandson," the God of Thieves replied with a grin, patting her back. "What happened today was a farce, and we all know it. In addition, I'm inviting you to the next Maths Party. Let's see if the curse still holds outside of our territory."
"That's great. Thanks, Father," Tyche said, releasing him.
No sooner had she released him when Harry took her place. "Thank you, Mister Hermes." Hugging Hermes was interesting, Harry noted. It felt like rules and regulations were mere silly suggestions to be ignored at will, coupled with the feeling of being able to reach anywhere on the planet at a moment's notice. He rather liked the feeling of freedom it created.
Hermes laughed softly, and patted the boy's back. "You can just call me 'Hermes'," he said. "I'm still not a fan of 'granddad' or 'grandfather'."
Harry laughed and released the God of Messengers, who grinned at Tyche, ruffled Harry's hair, and nodded at Hestia before vanishing.
Tyche, smiling, wrote something on the paper and handed it back to Harry. He read it, quickly, and nodded. "Writing sounds excellent, Mom." He hugged her again, the feeling of probability erupting once more.
When she released him, Tyche nodded a greeting at Hestia, before she vanished.
Harry stared at the empty space that held his mother, and then slowly turned to Hestia. "I'm really sure I don't like Mister Zeus, Hestia," he said, formally. "And I don't think I want to get to know him. Or give him a chance."
The Goddess of the Hearth sighed. "I can't really blame you," she answered. "I know you didn't make the best of impressions but to go out of his way like this, it's petty and cruel."
Harry just hugged his all-time favorite goddess. Right now, he didn't want to think, he just wanted to empty his mind and forget.
00000
With the tip of his tongue poking out between his lips in concentration, Harry manipulated the piping bag as he wrote on his latest creation. Finished, he deftly raised the bag without damaging the writing he had made in icing, and smiled.
"You seem busy," Hestia said, startling him.
Hurriedly putting the piping bag down, Harry smiled widely and grabbed the goddess in a big hug. "I was baking," he explained.
Hestia laughed softly, and indicated the various triple-layer chocolate cakes that dotted the counter and the table in the kitchen. "So I see," she said with laughter in her voice.
"I am going to ask Hermes to deliver them," the young boy explained. "I baked a cake for everyone who stood up for my mother yesterday. I've got thank you cards, too."
Hestia's smile turned sad, but she nodded regardless. "I am sure that the gods and goddesses in question will appreciate the gesture," the Goddess of the Home said as she studied the cake Harry had been working on.
Thank you, Miss Athena, Harry had written in frosting. "Nicely done," she complimented him.
"Thanks, Hestia," Harry said, a bit shyly, as he picked up the piping bag and continued decorating the cake.
"I see you made an extra large cake," the goddess said, looking at one exemplary specimen, which seemed to have a place of honor on the counter.
Harry nodded as he continued to pipe intricate rosettes around the circumference of Athena's cake. "The quadruple-layer chocolate cake is for Hermes, for finding a way for mom and me to stay in touch."
Hestia smiled, inwardly glad that gods had immortal livers as that was a huge amount of chocolate.
"And that one cake that's set apart?" she asked.
"That one's for Mister Dionysus. It's just out of the oven so it needs to cool a bit before I decorate it. I've set it apart because it's a cake for Mister Dionysus, you know? I wouldn't want to mix it up by mistake. I'll hand-deliver that one; it'll give me an excuse to spend some time at camp."
Hestia gave another low laugh. "I'm glad you're not feeling too bad, after yesterday," she said.
Harry fell silent for a few moments, before raising the piping bag, having finished his rosettes. "Baking takes my mind off things," he answered, honestly. "And this way, I get to make people happy." A shudder went through his body, and he seemed to be struggling to compose himself. "At least I can stay in contact with mom. I don't know her, but she's my mom, and I've wanted a mom for so long, and now Mister Zeus tried to take her from me."
He slowly turned to look at Hestia. "I know you want me to like everyone, Hestia," he said, on a low tone of voice, hesitatingly. "But I don't think I can like Mister Zeus right now."
The Goddess of the Home hugged him. A Hestia Hug. He loved those. "I can understand that, Harry."
When they broke, Harry looked at the undecorated cake. "I should finish up Mister Dionysus' cake, it should have cooled by now," he whispered.
"I will leave you to it, then," Hestia replied, giving him an honest, supportive smile. "I think I will go visit Zeus, just to see what he has to say for himself."
Harry looked at her, for a moment wondering whether he should stand up for Zeus or not. He didn't like it when Hestia was at odds with the other gods, and he liked it even less when it was over him, but he couldn't bring himself to say anything at the moment.
"Okay, Hestia," he said, softly.
Hestia patted his shoulder. "Don't worry, Harry. One way or another, things will resolve themselves."
The young boy nodded, and gave Hestia a small smile, just before she vanished.
He stood there for a few moments, lost in thought, before drawing a deep breath. He took a new piping bag and filled it with special frosting, made with crème de cacao. Time to decorate Mister Dionysus' cake, and pray to his grandfather for some help with delivering his creations.
He looked over the various cakes he had already finished. He was proud of them, and he'd done his best to personalize them for the intended recipient. Mister Poseidon's had seashells piped along the edge, Artie's had little arrows that he had spent a lot of time getting right, and so forth. He shot another look at the last cake he had finished. Miss Athena's intricate rosettes had come out well, if he did say so himself.
He turned to the final cake, and piped his thank you message. After finishing that, he starting piping various spirit-related glasses around the edge of it. He was sure the portly god would enjoy the special ingredient in the cake and the frosting.
He boxed up every cake, and taped his thank you cards to those boxes. Mister Dionysus' cake, ready for hand-delivering, was on a separate plate with a cover.
For the first time, Harry wondered how he was going to ask his grandfather to do this. He knew how busy the God of Messengers was, so going to knock on his temple door was likely to result in him finding an empty temple.
Also, he suddenly realized that Hermes Express cost money; and he wouldn't want to take advantage of the fact that he was Hermes' grandson to get free shipping.
Opening the drawer where he kept the spending money Hestia gave him, he took out a stack of drachmas, and made a neat tower of them in the middle of the table. Since he didn't immediately see any other way of contacting Hermes, Harry closed his eyes, folded his hands, and prayed.
"Hi Hermes. It's me, Harry," he started, not knowing just how much a god could hear through prayer. "I have some cakes that I made for the gods and goddesses who stood up for my mom yesterday, and I was wondering if you could deliver them for me? I don't know how much you usually ask for deliveries, so I have some money-"
Before he could finish, the cakes vanished with a popping noise, following by the sound of an old-fashioned cash register. Harry opened his eyes to find every cake except the one for Dionysus gone. He looked at the small stack of money on his table. At first sight, it seemed to be the same, but on closer count it seemed Hermes had charged him one gold coin for the service.
"Thanks, Hermes," Harry said, closing his eyes and folding his hands again.
There seemed to be a draft of wind that flowed through the kitchen, and for a moment, it felt like it hugged him and ruffled his hair before vanishing.
Harry grinned. He hoped the cakes would be well received.
00000
Harry emerged from the green flames burning in Hestia's Hearth at Camp Half-blood. The moment he cleared them, they turned back to their normal yellow-orange color, and Harry gave them a tiny smile in thanks before making his way to the Big House.
Various campers saw him pass by, but he was walking purposefully enough, carrying a large covered plate filled with cake, that they didn't approach him before he managed to reach his destination.
The plate was big and heavy, and required his two hands, which gave Harry a problem – he couldn't knock on the door with both hands occupied.
Carefully, he put the plate down, knocked, and managed to pick up his burden before the door was pulled open.
Dionysus blinked, then frowned, when he saw Harry at his door. "Harmon?" he asked on a level tone, indicating that Harry had better made it good, or the god would be most displeased.
Harry gave the god a smile. "Hi Mister Dionysus," Harry said, friendly and politely. "I made you something because you stood up for my mom yesterday."
The god's eyes narrowed further as he studied the covered plate. Finally reaching out, he pulled the cover off and studied the cake.
"It's got a little something extra in it for you," Harry explained.
Dionysus swiped some of the frosting off the cake with his finger and tasted it. His eyes opened and a grin formed on his lips. "You know my tastes, Harmon," the God of Wine said, still grinning, and taking the huge plate with a single hand and turning to go back inside.
"Also," Harry said, stopping the god. "I really don't like you-know-who right now, so I thought I'd mention there are things like red wine sauce, and whiskey sauce, and lots of other dishes that include things you can't have; so you may want to look into hiring a couple of regular chefs as well."
The god, who had stared in annoyance over his shoulder, nodded. His grin widened. "I'll do that, Harmon," he said. "Out of all these brats, I think I dislike you the least," he added, before turning fully and shutting the door.
Harry didn't mind, he knew the god was grumpy because of Zeus' edict. If Zeus had punished him by not being allowed to cook, or worse, talk with Hestia, he'd be upset and grumpy too.
Besides, Dionysus telling him that he was the least disliked demigod sounded like a compliment.
His smile vanished. He'd delivered his cakes. He wanted to write a letter to his mother, if only he knew what to write about. Hestia was right, he didn't know her, so he didn't know what interested her.
He walked away from the Big House, in search of his friends. He needed to take his mind off things, and his friends were usually good at diverting his attention from things that bothered him. Maybe they could have a walk on the beach, and he could say hello to Mister Poseidon. He wondered for a moment if the God of the Seas had received his cake.
"You seem rather distracted, Squirt," a voice broke into his thoughts, and Harry blinked to find himself standing still. Had he been so lost in thoughts that he'd stopped moving entirely?
He looked up, staring up at Thalia and Luke. He hadn't had much contact with them since bringing them to camp, mostly because of the age difference he guessed.
"Hi Thalia, Luke," he said. Focusing on Thalia, he said, "I really don't like your dad. He's an as-" he stopped speaking and furtively looked around, halfway expecting Hestia to be right behind him. She wasn't, and he let out a relived breath.
Both demigods laughed. "Don't mind your tongue, Squirt," Thalia said with a grin. "We've heard worse, trust me. So, what did Dear Old Dad do?"
Harry sighed. "I found my mom. She's Tyche, Goddess of Fortune. When she found me, she was really surprised, and wanted to know why I wasn't with the guardians she'd picked out, you know? And then she found out how I was treated and stuff, and she got really angry. So she went to the mortals to find out what was what and things. Then Zeus found out, and he called her to a trial and tried to have her convicted for not following the rules."
"He did what?" Luke asked, sounding shocked and outraged at the same time.
"I know, right?" Harry said. "Luckily, mom had disguised herself so most gods agreed to let her off, but Zeus didn't want to let her off so he cursed her; she can't speak to me, ever again, and she can't answer my prayers, ever again."
"Holy shit," Thalia said. "That sucks big time!"
Luke looked even more outraged. "Some gods just don't care," he muttered, angrily. "I can't believe that he would punish a god for looking out for her kid. That's just awful."
Harry nodded. "It is. And I really dislike him for it."
Thalia snorted. "I'd have a stronger choice of words if I were in your place, Squirt," she said. "My mother's as useless as they come, so no great loss, but yours sounded like she cares."
"I thought so, too," Harry whispered.
"Harry!" he looked up at his name being shouted. The next moment, Silena had him in a grapple-hug. "Good to see you again!"
He gave her a smile, and hoped it was genuine. She frowned slightly, and stepped back. "What's wrong?" she asked. It seemed like he hadn't been able to make his smile genuine.
"We'll leave you Squirts to talk things out," Thalia said. "Harry, sorry about my dad. You're right. He's an ass sometimes."
"Thanks, Thalia," he said, as the Daughter of Zeus and Son of Hermes walked away.
"What's wrong?" Silena repeated, putting her hands on his shoulders, as if restraining him.
"Let's find the others, so I only have to explain it once," Harry suggested.
Silena was silent and stared at him for a few moments, before giving a short nod. "Fine, but that better be one hell of a tale," she said, releasing him.
"It is," Harry said, nodding sadly. As they turned to find the others, Annabeth was walking up. Before Harry could utter a greeting, Silena was already tattling on him. He pouted at her. She ignored him.
Shaking his head, he ignored Annabeth's repeated questions regarding what was wrong, and went to find his three other friends.
The three sons of Apollo were found, where else, on the archery range. All three were glad to see Harry, even if they, too, immediately saw that something was wrong.
Now that they were all together, Harry explained, in more detail than he had explained to Thalia and Luke earlier, what had transpired in the last couple days. As he talked, he was leading them on the trail towards the beach.
"Hey, wait!" Silena interrupted after he had told who his mother was. "Lady Tyche is the daughter of Lord Hermes and my mother! That makes you my nephew!"
Harry shot her a small grin. "I thought you'd like that fact. Auntie."
Silena laughed and grabbed him into a hug, nearly pulling him off his feet as she did so. "It's great that we're family now. Now go clean your room."
Harry burst out laughing. "I knew that was going to be your first reaction!" he chortled.
Happy to see him smiling for real, Silena grinned at him. "Oh, there are plenty more chores I can have you do, nephew," he teased.
Harry grinned back. "Only if you don't mind me calling you auntie, Auntie," he teased back.
Silena huffed and theatrically crossed her arms. "I'm not that old."
"Then you can't make me clean my room," he answered with a satisfied nod. Suddenly realizing that they weren't alone, Harry swallowed and looked at the others, who seemed mostly amused. Except for Annabeth, she looked like she was vibrating in place to know the bad news.
"So, mom asked why I wasn't with her chosen guardian," Harry said, and went on to explain the rest of what had happened.
By the time he finished his tale, they were seated on a small dune overlooking the ocean.
"That… that's awful," Annabeth said. "You just found her, and she didn't do anything really wrong."
Harry nodded, choosing not to divulge Hermes' work-around. If it got back to Zeus, Harry could see the angry King of Gods close the loophole on him.
Silena just hugged him. A few moments later, Annabeth hugged him from the other side. Being in the middle of two girls hugging him was a new experience, and Harry wasn't sure how he felt about it. It felt nice, though.
"We're not hugging you," Louis said for himself and the two Guys. "But we definitely commiserate. Gods are fickle and dangerous."
"Most of them aren't that bad," Harry said, "But essentially, yeah. They can be really scary. And Mister Zeus is just nasty."
"Agreed," Silena said, when the two girls finally released him.
"Maybe we should do something," Annabeth suggested. "Something to take your mind off things."
Harry shrugged. "Sure, I could do with some diversion. It's why I came down here. I was ready to run up the walls by myself. What do you have in mind?"
"A spar?" The daughter of Athena suggested, getting a groan from Silena and shaking heads from the three Sons of Apollo.
"I don't enjoy fighting," Harry deferred.
"There's not much we can do, being restricted to camp as we are," Silena said. "I would suggest we go Pegasus riding, but I know that you're not a fan of Pegasi."
"I just feel like they're sizing me up or something," Harry muttered.
Silena laughed softly. Harry ignored her. "Are you really restricted to camp? I heard that was the case, but it sounds really… restrictive. I like being able to just make a run for it when things go bad."
"Technically, it's for our own protection," Louis explained. "The scent of our Godly Parent clings to us, and it attracts monsters. They claim that being here at camp is the safest place for us, and we shouldn't leave without permission."
Harry, never fond of doing what adults told him to do, as that way usually ended up in pain or without food, grinned. "How about we go out? I'm sure Louis could be counted on as a 'responsible adult', and I can take care of transportation."
Louis looked like he didn't much care for being a responsible adult, but the Guys were immediately for it, as was Silena. Annabeth looked like she wanted to agree, but couldn't bring herself to do so without complaint.
"Where would we go, though?" she asked. "And for how long? I mean, we need to make sure that Chiron doesn't miss us, or he'd be so mad."
"Come on, live a little," Jim – or Jack? - encouraged the young Daughter of Athena. "Louis is the token adult, and with your brains, I'm sure nothing will go wrong."
Flattering her mind seemed to be the magic words Annabeth needed to be 'convinced'. While Louis still grumbled about being 'responsible' for a group of ingrate reprobates – whatever those were, Harry made a note to look it up later – the biggest problem was still where to go.
"I can take us through the fire anywhere in the world," Harry said after they had shot suggestions back and forth. "So, how about I try using my Luck abilities and throw a dart at a map of the world? See where Luck would take us?"
Annabeth looked like she was part appalled by relying on luck and part excited at being able to test his abilities. Louis and the Guys were laughing themselves silly, while Silena was just grinning widely.
Thus decided, they retreated to the Athena cabin, where everyone loitered around outside while Annabeth went inside for the largest world map the cabin had in its possession. With the map procured, they went to the arts and crafts building, where Annabeth spent her time unfolding the huge map and pinning it up against the wall, while Silena went and found Harry some darts.
He closed his eyes, but before he could throw, Silena stopped him. She tied a scarf around his head, over his eyes, to 'prevent him from cheating'.
Harry grinned, enjoying the banter. Keeping his eyes closed despite the scarf, he lifted the dart.
He focused on a good place to go, and felt his instincts come to life. Now that he knew they were his luck senses, or probability senses, or whatever his mother wanted to call them, he felt a lot more confident in them.
The instincts guided his hand, and he released the dart.
He could hear his friends draw a breath. "What is it? Where are we going?" he asked, removing the improvised blindfold.
"Rome," Annabeth said, sounding stunned. "It hit Rome."
"Cool! I've never been to Rome," Harry said, grinning. "It sounds like fun, and with the time difference, we can leave here early tomorrow morning, get there in the early afternoon, and return in the evening when it's still early afternoon here so nobody will miss us."
A/N: Please Support Me On patreon.com/The_Alchemyst