Chapter Text
The minute Percy stepped back into the room, all eyes snapped to him. His father had gotten a hold of a pillow, and was squeezing it like a stress ball.
"Ah, Young Percy! How did it go?"
Hera said, smiling at the demi-god.
Percy beamed, a wordless answer in of itself.
"Great, actually. The Fates are allowing me to bring my friends here."
All the gods perked up at that.
If, by 'friends', he meant the other children. . .
Percy found Grover's hand, and gave it a comforting squeeze. Grover returned it, breathing in and out from behind the demi-god.
Percy stepped to the side, allowing Grover to be in full view of the gods.
"Gods of Olympus, meet Grover. Grover, meet the gods of Olympus."
Pan nearly had a coughing fit, and Dionysus' tail was wagging so much it was audibly thumping against the back wall.
Grover gave a sheepish smile, waving formally, pretending his hind quarters weren't shaking with genuine fear.
"Hello, Young Grover. It is wonderful to meet you in person."
Hera greeted, nodding her head towards him. Grover bowed his head back to her.
Pan looked ready to tackle the satyr, practically vibrating where he was sitting. Dionysus' eyes were dilated to the extent of looking like a lovesick cat. Grover locked onto Pan's gaze, staring at him silently.
The satyr looked conflicted, fear and genuine awe raging in his mind.
He swallowed, and smiled at the god of the wild.
"Hello, Lord Pan."
He whispered, his words barely audible.
Pan grinned back at him, his hands twitching at his sides. He wanted to scoop the little satyr up and never let go. That was his son, he didn't care what anyone else said.
"We should probably get back to reacting."
Percy muttered, laying a hand on his best-friend's shoulder.
Grover blinked, snapping out of the trance like state Pan seemed to set him in.
"Oh. Yeah."
"If you want, I'm pretty sure Pan won't mind you sitting with him."
Grover bit his lip, grabbing Percy's hand from where it laid on his shoulder.
"No, I- I want to sit with you. I think I need my mind to calm down first. I feel like I'm about to explode."
The demi-god dawned a knowing look on his face, nodding in sympathy.
"Hey, that's fine. I don't mind at all."
He tugged the satyr over to his spot on the floor, where his dad quickly checked over him, just in case.
Pan noticeably pouted when Grover moved to be with Percy, but said nothing.
Percy grabbed the remote again, leaning over to whisper a bit more basic information, before everyone turned to look at the screen.
"Oh, so it's about that time?"
Grover whispered back, cringing at the memory alone. Percy nodded, grimacing himself as the screen turned back on.
". . .I had weird dreams full of barnyard animals. Most of them wanted to kill me. The rest wanted food. I must've woken up several times, but what I heard and saw made no sense, so I just passed out again. . ."
Grover looked on in awe at the TV, tilting his head at the sounds and visions that came on.
"Woah, it's exactly like watching TV."
Percy snorted dryly.
"Except it's my life instead."
Grover smiled,but it quickly fell into another cringe.
"Oh, geez. That's. . .actually not good. I did a lot of stupid things on this quest. What if they smite me for it?"
He muttered. Percy wrapped an arm around his shoulder,scooting his friend closer to him.
"I guarantee they aren't going to hurt you G-man. Pan nearly had a heart attack over you being unconscious in the last episode-thing."
Percy whispered back, jabbing a thumb in the satyr god's direction.
Grover's shoulders sagged a little, the tension slowly draining from his body.
"And besides, if they do hurt you, I'll pitch a fit."
Grover chuckled, ears flicking in notice.
"I'll keep that in mind. Thanks."
". . .I remember lying in a soft bed, being spoon-fed something that tasted like buttered popcorn, only it was pudding. The girl with curly blond hair hovered over me, smirking as she scraped drips off my chin with the spoon. . ."
Both boys brightened at the young girl on screen, while Athena froze completely. Ares gave her a concerned glance, but she wasn't focused on him.
"Her eyes. . ."
She whispered, reaching up to place her hand near her own irises.
Ares' eyes widened, his gaze shooting back and forth between his sister, and the mini version of her taking care of Percy.
Nobody else seemed to recognize the girl as Athena's just yet, considering Percy's blurry eyesight was causing her to look slightly out of focus.
"Are you going to bring her in?"
Grover asked. Percy grinned.
"Obviously. whose going to stop us from accidentally setting the place on fire?"
Grover rolled his eyes fondly.
"Interesting. Why was this young girl nursing you back to health and not an adult?"
Apollon asked. Grover jumped at his voice.
"There were adults, and older teenagers, who usually took care of those things. I honestly don't know why they had Ann- I mean, the girl do it."
Percy responded. Apollon nodded, squinting suspiciously at the screen.
"I don't think I'm ever going to get used to that."
Grover muttered beside him.
"To what?"
"The gods being normal."
". . ."What will happen at the summer solstice?" . . ."What?". . ."What's going on? What was stolen? We've only got a few weeks!". . .Somebody knocked on the door, and the girl quickly filled my mouth with pudding. . ."
"Huh, reminds me of someone else I know."
Dionysus snorted, not-so-subtly glancing at the goddess of wisdom.
He blinked at the sheer amazement in her gaze, her feathers puffed out in shock and love.
"Wait! She just asked 'What was stolen?' is that what you two are fighting over?"
Demeter asked, turning to the god-king and the god of the sea respectively.
"Perhaps. That could explain the violence we've been sporting. But that doesn't explain why young Percy is involved in this."
Zeus muttered in return. Grover gave a sympathetic wince at their confusion.
"Oh boy. This isn't going to be pretty."
". . .The next time I woke up, the girl was gone. A husky blond dude. . .keeping watch over me. He had blue eyes- at least a dozen of them-on his cheeks, his forehead, the backs of his hands. . ."
Hera jolted, as did Hermes.
"Argos!"
They beamed at the same time.
Argos was a nice chatting buddy for Hermes, and a nice gossip buddy for Hera.
"I thank him kindly for helping us locate Io."
Zeus rumbled, a smile on his face.
Grover's face twisted in confusion, but he didn't ask any questions. Percy did say this pantheon of gods was a lot different then the ones he knew.
". . .When I finally came around for good. . .I was sitting in a deck chair on a huge porch, gazing across a meadow at green hills in the distance. . .My tongue was dry and nasty and every one of my teeth hurt. . ."
Apollon scanned the horizon, nodding seriously.
"Good, allowing the boy some fresh air while keeping him somewhere safe."
He mumbled, ignoring Artemis' snort next to him.
Grover's shoulders sagged just a little, relief showing blatantly in his eyes.
(It felt nice to be praised)
". . .On the table next to me was a tall drink. It looked like iced apple juice. . .My hand was so weak I almost dropped the glass. . ."Careful," a familiar voice said. . ."
Pan brightened, turning to Grover.
Grover held back a flinch, giving a wobbly smile back.
"Ah, so you're the one who moved him?"
Apollon said. Grover nodded. Technically, Lee helped, but he had a feeling he wouldn't be able to say it aloud.
Percy had mentioned not to spoil.
". . .Grover was leaning against the porch railing, looking like he hadn't slept in a week. Under one arm, he cradled a shoe box. . .a bright orange T-shirt that said CAMP HALF-BLOOD. Just plain old Grover. Not the goat boy. . ."
Pan's smile slipped to a frown, Dionysus making a sound very similar to a whine at the boy's state.
Athena leaned closer to the screen, squinting at the words on the brightly colored shirt.
"You have shirts, for this camp?"
Aphrodite muttered, tilting her head in wonder. The shirts weren't exactly a style she enjoyed, too bright. Too much, in a way.
Grover swallowed nervously.
Oh, no. She doesn't look very happy about the color. . .
"Yes, my Lady. The brightness of the shirt is to help those finding bodies. . ."
The satyr trailed off at Percy's frantic mouthing of no, shaking his head vigorously.
Immediately, the atmosphere dropped tenfold.
"Pardon?"
Aphrodite asked, as if she simply didn't hear what the young boy said. Oh, but she did.
She heard loud and clear.
"Well, whenever kids went on quests, some would pass out, or, die, and the other questmates would need to find their bodies so they could help them, or burn them properly-"
Grover was hastily interrupted by Percy pressing his hand to the satyr's mouth.
"Ahaha, let's just continue watching, there's more important stuff about to be discussed then simple shirts."
Percy exclaimed, shooting his friend a look that said 'Stop talking. Please.'
The gods were staring at Grover like he just announced Pan's death.
"What."
Ares said.
He recognized the formula. Soldiers did it all the time on the battlefield. But those were grown adults.
These kids did the same practice? And it was so normalized that the satyr spoke of it like it was the weather?
"You children are forced on quests?"
Hera was the one to speak now. They knew the whole reason for being here was to react to young Percy's quest, but some tiny part of her simply thought that he was special.
That he was the only one forced to go on a quest, because the god-king of this universe asked him to.
But now?
"Percy's right, how about we just look back at the screen?"
Grover squeaked, gently peeling his friend's hand off his mouth.
All eyes turned back to the TV. But the air remained tense enough to kill a guy.
They were not letting this go anytime soon.
". . .So maybe I'd had a nightmare. Maybe my mom was okay. We were still on vacation, and we'd stopped here at this big house for some reason. And. . ."
The two boys shrank back to their original positions in shame, Grover keeping a hand on his friend's shoulder to comfort him.
Poseidon frowned, glancing at his son with sorrow. His poor boy was in denial. And he couldn't do anything to help.
". . ."I'm sorry,". . ."I'm a failure. I'm- I'm the worst satyr in the world." He moaned, stomping his foot so hard it came off. I mean, the Converse hi-top came off. . ."Oh, Styx!" he mumbled. . ."
Percy, despite the situation, snickered, while Grover buried his face in his hands. Not his brightest moment.
"You're not a failure, young Grover."
Grover peeked out from his hands at the sound of Hera's voice, the queen of the gods sporting a soft smile. She had beaten Pan to it, who clicked his mouth shut with a determined nod.
"I know, my lady. I was just. . .not in a good place at that time."
Percy patted Grover on the back with a grin. Grover continued to stare at the goddess when she nodded, and turned back to the screen.
"Weird. I'm used to her not sparing any satyrs a single glance."
Percy shrugged, glancing at Hera while the TV started to play again.
"Told you they'd be different."
"I know it's still strange though. I've gotten so used to the gods from my world, that it weirds me out when they act so kind."
"Fair enough."
". . .Grover was a satyr. I was ready to bet that if I shaved his curly brown hair, I'd find tiny horns on his head. . .I was alone. An orphan. . .I'd do something. . ."
Grover turned bright red in a matter of seconds, jaw dropped at his giggling friend.
"Excuse you? I could've just shown you if you wanted me to!"
He spluttered. Percy started full on cackling, leading to a few of the younger gods snorting as well, until almost all of the younger generation were laughing.
Grover pouted, arms crossed as he turned his head away from Percy.
"I will hide all the razors from now on. You've lost your arts and crafts privilege!"
He scolded, Percy only laughing harder at his friend's misery. Even Poseidon was chuckling to himself, glad that his son and his friend were comfortable enough to have fun right now.
". . ."Don't strain yourself," I recoiled at the taste, because I was expecting apple juice. It wasn't that at all. It was chocolate chip cookies. . .my mom's homemade blue chocolate chip cookies. . . And told me everything was going to be okay. . ."
"Nectar?"
Athena questioned.
Both boys nodded, while Hera's smile grew.
Is that why he gravitated to the cookies during their break?
". . ."Come on. Chiron and Mr. D are waiting.". . ."
"Well, we all know who Chiron is, but who is Mr.D?"
Dionysus asked. Percy stifled another bout of laughter, while Grover tried his best to stare at the screen innocently.
The god raised an eyebrow.
"Spoilers?"
They nodded in sync.
". . .We must've been on the north shore of Long Island, because on this side of the house, the valley marched all the way up to the water. . .The landscape was dotted with buildings that looked like ancient Greek architecture. . .Kids in bright orange T-shirts like Grover's were chasing each other around a cluster of cabins nestled in the woods. Some shot targets at an archery range. Others rode horses down a wooded trail, and, unless I was hallucinating, some of their horses had wings. . ."
It was quiet. But for once, it was not a suffocating silence.
The gods stared in complete awe.
Children. So many beautiful children.
All within the same camp walls. All different sizes, different ages, and yet none looked sickly.
There were a few scraped knees, or bruised hands from playing, but nothing serious. They were alive.
Giggling echoed throughout the room, coming from the TV. The children were happy.
"I. . ."
Zeus whispered, eyes darting left and right, spotting grandchildren and nieces and nephews of all different shapes and sizes. He could easily guess who was whose, just by their features alone.
"There's. . .so many. . ."
Hera said, eyes watering. Demeter didn't bother to hide the tears steaming down her face. Hestia was silently sobbing into her sleeve.
The younger generation couldn't move. Couldn't breathe.
For many millennia, children didn't get the luck to giggle. They didn't get the luck needed to breath.
Children died as infants, barely given a name before they were put to rest. Babies cried until they closed their eyes.
Barely any made it past a few days. Some made it a few months. Only extremely lucky ones made it to their teen years, and that in of itself wasn't pretty.
Persephone, Pan, and Dionysus were bed ridden until their adult years. Persephone couldn't pick more than a few flowers before the air turned against her.
Pan couldn't run through the wild without the plants drawing blood.
Dionysus couldn't revel in his own wine without his lungs wanting to remove themselves from his body.
To see so many living, breathing children without a care in the world for some curse, it felt like a cruel siren song.
And yet it wasn't. Because one demi-god was before them. One satyr was before them.
And they were breathing. They were laughing. They were smiling.
They were looking at the screen with homesickness. They missed this camp, where they were safe. Where they were surrounded by other children, just like them.
The first person to draw an unneeded breath was Hestia, wiping tears from her face with a smile that could split the earth.
Her family soon followed, smiles as bright as Helios' sun shining through the room.
". . .Down at the end of the porch, two men sat across from each other at a card table. The blond-haired girl who'd spoon-fed me popcorn-flavored pudding was leaning on the porch rail next to them. The man facing me was small, but porky. . .curly hair so black it was almost purple. . .He wore a tiger-pattern Hawaiian shirt, and he would've fit right in at one of Gabe's poker parties, except I got the feeling this guy could've out-gambled even my stepfather. "That's Mr. D," Grover murmured to me. "He's the camp director. Be polite.". . ."
Apollon brightened at the image of Chiron, while Pan squinted at the TV suspiciously, ignoring the moisture still clinging to his eyes. He glanced at Dionysus, who was sniffling quietly, then back at the TV.
"That kind of looks like. . ."
He muttered, trailing off before he could finish.
There was no way.
". . ."The girl, that's Annabeth Chase. . .she's been here longer than just about anybody. . .I recognized the tweed jacket, the thinning brown hair, the scraggly beard. "Mr. Brunner!" I cried. . ."Ah, good, Percy," he said. "Now we have four for pinochle.". . ."
Athena tensed once more, eyes glued to the girl's own. They looked so much like hers.
Zeus gasped, scanning this 'Annabeth' girl's features with his mouth open.
"Athena-"
He choked, whipping his head to his daughter, who was currently not even breathing.
"Yes."
She muttered, not wanting to take her eyes off the girl, like she would fade into dust if she did.
Nobody else heard them, tilting their heads in confusion when they saw the young girl's appearance.
"Oh! Perhaps she's a daughter of you, Aphrodite?"
Demeter turned her head to the girl, who cooed in thought. Athena's brows twitched downward, but she remained quiet.
Suddenly, there was a tiny noise, an indescribable 'pop' before a young girl tumbled down onto the two children, all three yelling out yelps of pain.
Every god tensed, some shooting up from their positions, only to pause at who climbed out of the tangled limbs.
"Annabeth!"
Percy cheered, being the first to recover from her fall. The blonde was dizzily sitting up, with the help of Grover, who was simultaneously rubbing his head to ease the pain.
"Percy? Grover?"
Annabeth mumbled, blinking the haze from her eyes. Sure enough, the two idiots were smiling at her like they had just won the lottery.
"Uh-"
She froze when her eyes met her mother's from down the room. The goddess looked more shocked than she did.
That was her mother. But it didn't look like her mother.
"What-?"
She choked. Percy dragged her up and into a standing position, Grover trailing behind to keep her steady.
"It's a long story, wise girl. Come on, we'll explain it."
It didn't take too long, but Annabeth definitely wasn't relaxed by the end of it. They understood why.
"Okay, okay- this isn't. . .that strange. I mean, sure, this has never really been done before, but that doesn't mean it can't be done."
She mumbled, squeezing each of their hands in hers. The girl breathed, in and out, in and out, until her heart didn't want to jump out of her chest.
"Yeah, this- this isn't fine, but I can deal with this."
Percy nodded, smiling.
"That's okay. You can hate it, you can love it, I absolutely don't mind either."
Annabeth gave him a quick but soft smile in return, and pecked Grover's cheek, before dragging them both back out of the hallway.
"Yeah, I can do this. Let's get back to this. . .reaction thing."
They entered the room, Annabeth pointedly ignoring the grey eyes staring into the back of her skull, and moved to sit down next to Percy and Grover. She almost froze when she saw who was sitting with them.
In a move that would shock everybody and nobody, she bowed at the hip, still standing.
"Hello, Lords and Ladies of Olympus. My name is Annabeth Chase, a demi-god child, and friend of Grover Underwood, and Percy Jackson."
Zeus chuckled, waving for the girl to stand.
"It is lovely to meet you, dear Annabeth, but please, no need to bow."
Annabeth swallowed, nodding to the god-king. There was something off about his tone, an undercurrent of anger there. She could tell it wasn't directed at her, but it was still strange. Her eyes, the same piercing grey Athena couldn't stop staring at, scanned the room at large, receiving soft smiles or enthusiastic grins from the occupants.
Satisfied, or the most she could be, Annabeth sank to her knees on the carpet floor, and bowed her head to Poseidon.
"Lord Poseidon, I hope you do not mind my presence here. I am simply friends with your son, and Grover, and would like to be near them."
She could vaguely see Lady Aphrodite raising an eyebrow at that, but said nothing.
(This may be a different version of Poseidon, but that didn't mean he still wasn't the most vengeful and possessive of all of them.)
Poseidon himself looked genuinely shocked, his features smoothing out into a grin.
"There is nothing wrong with befriending my boy, child. Please, sit wherever you'd like."
Annabeth nodded, and pressed herself against Percy. Grover scooted from Percy's other side, and squished himself next to her, so she had both of her idiots guarding her.
". . ."Oh, I suppose I must say it. Welcome to Camp Half-Blood. There. Now, don't expect me to be glad to see you.". . .it was how to tell when an adult has been hitting the happy juice. If Mr. D was a stranger to alcohol, I was a satyr. . ."
Annabeth's awe at how the TV worked immediately melted into a genuine wince at the scene playing out.
"Oh great, it's this part?"
"Hey, I said the same thing!"
Grover chirped. She gave him an eye roll, but her lips were fighting a smile.
Percy nodded, his brows slightly furrowed at her reaction.
"I guess I should've known, since you two mentioned them seeing camp. Ugh, I'm not looking forward to seeing how I acted here."
Percy frowned, placing a hand on her shoulder.
"Hey, what do you mean by that?"
"I was terrible to you here, seaweed brain."
Annabeth responded.
"What? No you weren't? You were just a little annoying."
"A little? Percy, I-"
Her jaw immediately clamped shut, and she almost gasped, gripping her throat like something had wrapped against it. Both boys jumped, concern flashing in their gazes.
"Beth, you okay?"
She coughed as discreetly as she could, clearing her throat in an attempt to get her words to work.
"I'm guessing that's what happens when you give spoilers?"
Percy's eyes widened in realization, and he grabbed his own throat
"Oh. Yeah, that- that makes sense now. Sorry, Annabeth, I completely forgot about that."
Annabeth waved him away, working her jaw one last time.
"No, it's fine Perce. That just means you've been spoiler free this entire time, good job."
She winked. He snorted, and Grover chuckled. Her smile slipped right back off her face.
"Seriously though, I was pretty terrible to you here Percy. And I'm really sorry for that. I didn't know what I was thinking half the time."
Percy shook his head, wrapping her in a quick hug.
I forgive you Ann. Promise, it wasn't that big of a deal. Besides, I was nasty right back, so I should be apologizing too."
Annabeth furrowed her brows.
"No-"
"Okay, how about we make a compromise? Whenever one of us does a bad thing, we'll apologize for it, and move on."
Percy interrupted. Annabeth pursed her lips, before sighing in defeat, and nodding. She knew she wouldn't win against Percy.
Percy grinned, gripping both of his friends in another hug, and finally turning back to the screen.
"Holy, us, who is this guy? Why is he being such an ass?"
Dionysus suddenly piped from the back. Grover made a wheezing sound, trying to keep his laugh in, which in turn set Percy off, and then a badly stifled Annabeth.
Dionysus looked at them in pure confusion, while Pan's face slowly dawned with horrified realization.
".. . ."Annabeth?". . .She was probably my age, maybe a couple of inches taller, and a whole lot more athletic looking. . .except her eyes ruined the image. They were startling gray, like storm clouds; pretty, but intimidating, too, as if she were analyzing the best way to take me down in a fight. . ."
Everyone shut up within the span of two seconds, staring at the screen like it had revealed the secrets of the universe.
Both demi-gods looked like they wanted to sink into the floor and die, while Grover smiled knowingly.
"You really are mine."
Athena breathed, head snapping to her daughter(Her daughter! Hers! Her little owlet!)who only shrunk further in on herself.
"You are my daughter!"
She chirped. Annabeth swallowed thickly, nodding without a word.
"Oh my goodness! Congratulations Athena!"
Hera exclaimed, turning to her step-daughter with a bright smile.
Annabeth blinked, eyeing Hera with confusion. Percy whispered something in her ear, and she quickly averted her eyes, mumbling an "Oh, right."
Zeus, meanwhile, was staring at the screen.
"Little one, may I ask a question?"
He muttered, turning to the young blonde. The girl almost jumped, which definitely didn't strengthen his anger for the other him, and pressed her lips together.
"Yes, my lord."
Zeus frowned, looking not too happy about the 'lord' part.
"Does the godly mother of your universe have the virgin oath?"
Annabeth winced, but nodded all the same.
"Yes, my lord, i-"
She clamped her mouth shut, and looked up at the ceiling.
"Uh, can I speak of my birth?"
"Yes, you may. It will not be clarified on for quite a while, and you of all children know how impatient people can be."
Annabeth flushed red, and cleared her throat, ignoring Athena's raised eyebrow at that comment.
"I was born from my mother's mind, like she was with you. It's just, a lot less painful."
Athena tilted her head, glancing at her father with a twitch of a smile.
"Ah, that makes quite a lot of sense."
The god-king replied.
"So, you're a literal headache?"
The god of wine teased, winking in her direction. Percy tensed a little, but loosened when Annabeth snorted.
"Yup."
She answered unabashedly. The god of madness snickered at her response.
"She really is Athena's child."
Demeter whispered to Hades, who huffed a laugh in response. Ares shook Athena's shoulder with pride, grinning widely. Hephaestus didn't do anything physically, but nodded absentmindedly at the perfect craftsmanship of the girl. (And her companions.)
The twins stared at the girl with fondness. She was so much like her mother and yet, her own person as well. So adorable.
". . .She glanced at the minotaur horn in my hands, then back at me. . . ."You drool when you sleep.". . ."
Percy chuckled at that, nudging Annabeth, who was still trying not to laugh in the presence of the gods. (And failing miserably.)
"That is the first thing you told him?"
Athena muttered, amusement in her tone. Annabeth's smile widened, just a fraction. (Her mother was proud of her! Well, a different version, but still her mother!)
". . ."And Mr. D . . . does that stand for something?". . ."Young man, names are powerful things. You don't just go around using them for no reason.". . ."
"This guy's a dick. He needs a good cup of wine or something."
Dionysus grumbled, glaring at the man on screen. He looked a little like him, but the god refused to pair the two together. He wasn't comforting, or helping, Percy at all!
Cue more laughter from the trio, Grover the loudest of them all.
Both the wild and madness were happy they were enjoying themselves, but Dionysus and the rest of the family (aside from Pan, apparently) were still confused on why they were laughing so much.
". . ."Yes, sir!" Grover trembled as he took the fourth chair, though I didn't know why he should be so afraid of a pudgy little man in a tiger-print Hawaiian shirt. "You do know how to play pinochle?" Mr. D eyed me suspiciously. "I'm afraid not," I said. "I'm afraid not, sir," he said. . ."
The laughter stopped short, and Grover groaned into his hands, leaning forward until his forehead touched the carpet. Percy was, in turn, cringing at his on-screen self, while Annabeth continued to snicker, not aware of this conversation beforehand.
Dionysus scowled, and Pan, suddenly snapped from his horrified transe, did as well.
"I don't like the way he speaks to you."
Dionysus growled, leopard tail flicking behind him in annoyance. Grover's face went red, and Annabeth coughed trying to stop another bout of laughter.
Zeus squinted at the TV, gently nudging his wife to get her attention.
"Doesn't he resemble Dionysus a bit?"
He muttered.
"If I was thousands of years older and grumpy yeah."
Dionysus, who heard his father, remarked. Zeus laughed at his son's expression looking extremely similar to the man on screen right now.
". . "Please," I said, "what is this place?". . ."I asked the same question.". . .Grover flinched every time one landed in his pile. . ."
Grover groaned even louder, if that was possible, grabbing a blanket and burying himself in it. The two demi-gods sobered up. Annabeth patted his back to give him a semblance of comfort.
"Flinch? You flinched?"
Dionysus muttered, his grip on the carpet now looking similar to a cat scratching at a bed post.
Percy grimaced, looking at Annabeth, who bit her lip. He was not going to like this reveal.
"Has this man hurt you, young satyr?"
Zeus asked, narrowing his eyes at his son-look-a-like.
"No, my lord."
Grover answered, his voice muffled from the blanket he was currently using as a shield.
He said nothing more, neither did the other children.
"I'm going to assume more will be said on the matter later?"
Hera responded.
The blanket shuffled a little, showing that Grover was nodding, before he realized they couldn't see him, and verbally said yes.
". . ."Typical," Mr. D said. "That's how they usually get killed. Young man, are you bidding or not?" "What?" I asked. He explained, impatiently, how you bid in pinochle, and so I did. . ."
Poseidon growled then, low and vibrating. Annabeth felt it in her bones.
"How dare he speak of Sally that way."
Athena squinted, eyes finally off her daughter, and pursed her lips.
"He speaks as though he is not mortal. Is he a god?"
"That would explain why he's such an asshole. The immortals from this world don't seem very kind."
Ares grunted in agreement.
Zeus nodded as well, focusing on the man's words. It was strange. The way he spoke was familiar to Dionysus as well, whenever he was refused wine.
"Is this a child of Dionysus, chosen to help the demi-gods at camp?"
Dionysus blinked, eyes expanding like he did with Grover earlier.
"If he is, then you obviously raised him wrong."
Pan pouted. Dionysus huffed in sync with him, still a little mad.
The demi-gods were finding it very hard to keep it together.
". . ."Gods-the forces you call the Greek gods-are very much alive.". . ."Mr. D," Grover asked timidly, "if you're not going to eat it, could I have your Diet Coke can?" "Eh? Oh, all right." Grover bit a huge shard out of the empty aluminum can and chewed it mournfully. . ."
Annabeth burst out laughing at the anxious chewing, which caused Grover to huff under the blanket. (Very similar to Pan's earlier.)
Pan looked on in confusion, turning to the lump that was now his son.
"You can. . .eat things like that?"
"Satyrs can eat anything, they have really strong jaws that can chew through metal. Though, they are also vegetarians most of the time, choosing to not eat meat of their fellow animals."
Annabeth explained, while Percy cackled at his friend's on-screen expression.
Pan's eyes sparkled in wonder, and Dionysus cooed at any information they can get.
Demeter hummed in thought.
"Interesting. I'm happy they've settled a lifestyle for themselves."
"Don't be laughing at me, Percy. You're about to start acting like an idiot too!"
Percy immediately shut his mouth.
". . ."Ah, gods, plural, as in, great beings that control the forces of nature and human endeavors: the immortal gods of Olympus.". . ."Zeus," I said. "Hera. Apollo. You mean them.". . .distant thunder on a cloudless day. . ."
Percy's face went red, and Annabeth patted his shoulder in sympathy.
"Yeah, that always confuses demi-gods on their first day."
She supplied helpfully.
The gods in question perked up, while Poseidon dipped his mouth into a frown. (Pout.)
"I can get Mother and Father, they are the king and queen of Olympus, but why would you think of me?"
Apollon asked, amusement in his tone.
"And why has your name been butchered?"
Artemis chimed in, pointing out the absence of the last few letters in his name.
"Um, they. . .er, your name was changed when the. . .Romans came in."
Annabeth explained.
"Those romans again."
Artemis scowled, while her brother quirked up an eyebrow in thought.
"You call me Apollo, now? Not Apollon?"
Annabeth and Percy nodded together.
"Hm, I don't like it, but if you children find it easier, Apollo is fine by me."
Percy smiled. Annabeth blinked in surprise, but masked it with a smile of her own.
"I'll keep calling you Apollon, it's easier to separate you two that way."
Percy muttered with a shrug.
Apollon nodded in thanks.
"Goodness, you really didn't know about us for half of your life?"
Hera whispered.
"The gods. . . aren't as blatantly worshipped in modern day, not many people know about you at all."
"Oh. How terrifying."
She responded, brows furrowed in worry.
". . ."I would really be less casual about throwing those names around, if I were you." "But they're stories,". . ."Science!" Mr. D scoffed. . ."
"Definitely a god."
Dionysus remarked, watching as the god on screen got so offended.
". . ."And tell me, Perseus Jackson". . .I wasn't liking Mr. D much, but there was something about the way he called me mortal, as if . . . he wasn't. It was enough to put a lump in my throat, to suggest why Grover was dutifully minding his cards, chewing his soda can, and keeping his mouth shut. . ."
"Your full name?"
Grover asked, poppin this head out of the blanket. His hair was all frizzy now, resulting in a coo from the two youngest gods, and a quiet coo from Hermes.
Judging by his facial expression, he wanted to dive right back under it.
"Yeah, that shocked me, I never told anyone my genuine name before."
"Mr.D usually doesn't even call us by the right nick-name, let alone our actual names, unless he's upset. So you'd be right to be scared."
Annabeth leaned against Percy, who was rubbing the goosebumps on his arms away. No matter what, anyone calling him by his full name gave him full body chills.
Dionysus frowned.
"What do you mean by that?"
"It'll be shown soon."
Annabeth replied. The god frowned deeper.
Why was Grover seemingly so scared of this man, like that was his boss or something? Pan was his boss, his father, not this grungy god! (He ignored the comment from earlier, that he might be his son. He would never raise his son like this, and if the other him did, then it was simply shameful.)
The boy's voice from earlier rang in his head.
Pan fading? What a joke.
". . .".If you were a god, how would you like being called a myth, an old story to explain lightning?. . .that someday people would call you a myth, just created to explain how little boys can get over losing their mothers?". . ."
Apollon jumped, jaw on the floor.
"Woah, that-"
Pan sputtered.
"Chiron doesn't do well with emotions. He's not the best at comforting people, or letting people down easily."
Annabeth remarked, wincing at Percy's crestfallen face on screen.
"Yeah, that wasn't his best moment. He gets way better later."
Percy agreed.
Poseidon, about ready to punch the screen, forced himself to calm down. If his son said the centaur got better, then he would believe that.
". . ."Bad enough I'm confined to this miserable job, working with boys who don't even believe!" He waved his hand and a goblet appeared on the table, as if the sunlight had bent, momentarily, and woven the air into glass. The goblet filled itself with red wine. . ."Mr. D," he warned, "your restrictions.". . ."
Athena's eyes widened in horror, snapping her neck to her wine loving brother, who had his mouth open in shock.
"What?! He likes the same drinks as me too? Who is this guy?"
He yelped, causing the many oblivious family members to chuckle, before the mood sobered again.
"Restrictions? Confined? Is this god not working here by choice?"
Hephaestus huffed.
"Maybe that's why he's so grumpy, then."
Ares snarked.
The children were strangely quiet, the two demi-gods having joined their satyr friend in his blanket.
". . .Mr. D looked at the wine and feigned surprise.. . ."Old habits! Sorry!". . ."Mr. D offended his father a while back, took a fancy to a wood nymph who had been declared off-limits.". . ."Father loves to punish me. . .the second time, he sent me here. Half-Blood Hill. . ."
"Father?"
Dionysus quoted, glancing at his own father. This was getting kind of scary. . .
His father would never do that, yes, but they've already established how bad the other Zeus was.
This couldn't be him, could it?
"Punished for love? How grouchy is that?"
Aphrodite scoffed. Hera nodded along.
". . .My father is Zeus, of course." I ran through D names from Greek mythology. Wine. The skin of a tiger. The satyrs that all seemed to work here. The way Grover cringed, as if Mr. D were his master. "You're Dionysus," I said. "The god of wine.". . ."
Everything went silent. Pan gripped his friend's shoulder like it was the end of the world, and Zeus grew a concerning shade of white.
His aunts and uncles looked ready to jump through the screen and strangle this other Zeus, while his older siblings had their jaws on the floor.
"That's me?"
Dionysus yelped, eyes snapping to the kids, who all looked equally as caught.
"Oh us, why-?"
"Because Zeus is an ass."
Percy remarked under the blanket. Annabeth shot him a nervous look, glancing at the Zeus in the room with them in fear.
"Dionysus, you are well right?"
Zeus asked turning his head to look at his youngest. Dionysus suddenly slunk lower in his sitting position, realizing this other him just got him confined to the nest for another few months.
"Yes, father, I'm fine. Just annoyed."
"He took away his wine."
Athena muttered. Everyone froze.
"He said he had restrictions that he was banned to this camp. Dionysus tried to get some wine, and was vaguely threatened for it "
She gestured to the screen, where other Dionysus was sipping on Diet coke mournfully.
Zeus somehow grew even more pale, while Dionysus summoned a goblet of wine, and downed it in two gulps. Just to remind himself that he still had his. And the rest of his family that was burning holes in his head.
"How dare he?"
Zeus roared, startling the kids.
"He took away your wine? Your function?"
Hermes whispered, eyes glued to the TV in front of him.
"Punishing his son for such a small matter! He took a liking to the nymph, that is nothing!"
Zeus continued, holding his second youngest son tight. Pan was squeezing the life out of Dionysus' arm.
"Okay, while I love throwing a pity party for me, can we please get back to the illusion? The children look uncomfortable."
He pointed a finger to the children huddled together under the blanket.
Zeus sucked in a breath, trying to calm himself down. With his wife and son's help, he managed.
"Right. Right. My apologies children, my anger seems to have gotten the better of me."
"You're fine, lord Zeus."
Grover squeaked, the others nodding in unison. Poseidon ruffled his son's hair for comfort.
". . ."What do they say, these days, Grover? Do the children say, 'Well, duh!'?" "Y-yes, Mr. D." "Then, well, duh! Percy Jackson. Did you think I was Aphrodite, perhaps?". . ."
Aphrodite blinked in confusion, turning to lock eyes with the youngest child of Zeus.
"Nah, you're too beautiful to be confused for me."
Dionysus grinned. Aphrodite rolled her eyes, giggling.
"Thank you dear, but I don't want you putting yourself down too."
Dionysus raised his hands in a fake surrender.
"You seem to be taking this well."
Annabeth piped up, looking at Percy's genuinely blank face on the TV.
"My brain wasn't exactly processing that he was a god."
Percy mumbled back. The god of wine snorted.
". . ."You're a god." "Yes, child." "A god. You.". . . I saw visions of grape vines choking unbelievers to death, drunken warriors insane with battle lust, sailors screaming as their hands turned to flippers, their faces elongating into dolphin snouts. . .he would plant a disease in my brain that would leave me wearing a straitjacket in a rubber room for the rest of my life. "Would you like to test me, child?". . ."No. No, sir.". . ."
Percy grimaced, turning his face away from the screen with Annabeth in tow. Only Grover looked at it head on, slightly unimpressed.
"God of madness too, Seaweed brain."
Annabeth jokingly chided, poking him in the cheek. He stuck his tongue out at her.
The god of insanity in question had frozen completely, while the rest of his family winced or turned their eyes to the floor.
"I. . .threatened you?"
"I wasn't the easiest kid to deal with. I kind of deserved that one."
Percy responded, leaning on Annabeth's shoulder. Poseidon glanced at his son with enough concern to flood the entire theater.
"But-"
Dionysus choked.
"It's fine, man. Wasn't that big of a deal."
Percy said. Dionysus scanned the child, worry dancing in his eyes, before finally relenting, eyes now glued to the huddle of children.
". . .He got up, and Grover rose, too. . ."But first, Grover, we need to talk, again, about your less-than-perfect performance on this assignment." Grover's face beaded with sweat. "Y-yes, sir." Mr. D turned to me. "Cabin eleven, Percy Jackson. And mind your manners." He swept into the farmhouse, Grover following miserably. . ."
Grover immediately groaned, shoving his face into a nearby pillow he had grabbed. Dionysus and Pan tensed.
"What did I do to you?"
The god of wine asked desperately.
"Nothing much. Just verbal berating."
The satyr grumbled. Annabeth smoothed his hair out to calm him down.
". . ."Well now, there's Mount Olympus in Greece. And then there's the home of the gods, the convergence point of their powers, which did indeed used to be on Mount Olympus. It's still called Mount Olympus, out of respect to the old ways, but the palace moves, Percy, just as the gods do.". . ."
"Ah, I suppose that makes since. Is that why humans do not pray to us as much anymore?"
Athena quipped, turning to her daughter. Annabeth perked up a little, nodding.
"Yes. That's one of the main reasons."
She said, practically beaming. Athena looked ready to scoop the little girl up into her arms already.
". . ."You mean the Greek gods are here? Like . . . in America?" "Well, certainly. The gods move with the heart of the West.". . .or at least, they are tied so tightly to it that they couldn't possibly fade, not unless all of Western civilization were obliterated. The fire started in Greece. Then, as you well know-or as I hope you know, since you passed my course-the heart of the fire moved to Rome, and so did the gods. Oh, different names, perhaps- Jupiter for Zeus, Venus for Aphrodite, and so on-but the same forces, the same gods.". . ."
"That's what the Romans are? Just versions of us with different names?"
Demeter titled her head in confusion. Annabeth made an unsure sound.
"Eh, kind of. You gods are technically the same, but there was a while new society, and new worshippers, you gained due to it. That's why Lord Apollon's name was so smoothly changed."
Apollon squinted at the screen, where flashes of roman tapestries appeared with Chiron's voice.
"It doesn't look too different. I'm simply assuming the lack of animal features is because of these romans?"
Annabeth nodded again.
"Yeah, the Romans liked your human designs more than your animalistic designs. And they were a lot more strict, so your personalities changed too."
"You're quite knowledgeable on all of this. I'm assuming you like to do research?"
Hephaestus rumbled, raking a hand through his beard. Annabeth's cheeks flushed a bright red, and she gave a sheepish grin.
". . ."Who are you, Chiron? Who . . . who am I?" Chiron smiled. He shifted his weight as if he were going to get up out of his wheelchair, but I knew that was impossible. . .But for now, we should get you a bunk in cabin eleven. There will be new friends to meet. And plenty of time for lessons tomorrow. . ."
"That's a bit deep isn't it?"
Grover said, turning to an embarrassed Percy.
"I forgot how existential I was."
"Actually, looking back on this, I think you reacted pretty well, all things considered. It was mostly us demi-gods that were the dramatic ones."
Annabeth replied, cringing once more at the memories.
"Gods, I was super bratty to you here."
"Hey,"
Percy poked her in the forehead, brows furrowed.
"We made a deal, once the action has been shown on screen, then we can apologize and talk about how shitty we were to each other. I promise, it wasn't that deep, wise girl."
Annabeth sighed dejectedly, but smiled all the while.
"Okay, okay. I'll try to stop, but I can't promise I'll shut up about it."
Apollon, meanwhile, snorted at Percy's confusion.
"I am intrigued to your reaction of him being a centaur."
". . . And then he did rise from his wheelchair. . .I stared at the horse who had just sprung from the wheelchair: a huge white stallion. But where its neck should be was the upper body of my Latin teacher, smoothly grafted to the horse's trunk. "What a relief," the centaur said. "I'd been cooped up in there so long, my fetlocks had fallen asleep. Now, come, Percy Jackson. Let's meet the other campers.". . ."
Annabeth and Grover burst out laughing, and Percy, while trying to fight it, eventually joined them.
Pan and Dionysus snickered, but didn't have it in them to fully laugh after the episode's main topic.
Apollon admired Chiron's horse half, glad that he was still taking good care of it. It even looked stronger here, which he was grateful for.
Percy continued to giggle, while reaching for the remote, that had fallen out of his hands when he cuddled up next to his friends.
"Does anybody need a break before we get started on the next episode?"
"Episode?"
Grover chuckled.
"I mean, it's basically a TV series at this point. Especially with how many buttons are on this thing."
"Fair enough."
The gods all looked at each other, before standing up as a group. The subject was clear when Dionysus groaned.
"Forgive us children, but we must speak of personal matters."
Percy shrugged, fiddling with the remote.
"I don't care, take as long as you need."
The gods filed out one after another, leaving the kids alone.
"They're. . ."
Annabeth began.
"Different."
Grover finished.
"It's not a bad different either, but it feels bad to you because you're not used to it."
The satyr continued. Annabeth swallowed.
"Yeah, basically. I just- I've only ever personally met my mom once, during last year's winter solstice, and she acted like I thought she would. Cold, distant, but supports me by giving me gifts."
She took out the baseball cap she had stuffed into her pocket, running her fingers along the seams.
"But. . .this Athena smiled at me. In the first two minutes of meeting me. She's been watching me, excited when I talk about the most random things. It's so different that it feels like-"
"Like your dreaming?"
Percy chimed in. The girl nodded.
"Trust me, I felt like that too, when I first came in. And I'm not saying you guys have to enjoy your time here. I'm pretty sure I'm the only one here who's whole life didn't revolve around one god or another, so it would be pretty stupid to think that."
Percy put the remote down on the carpet.
"I understand it's a really big shift in tone. Gods, even I was flabbergasted by Mr.D and Uncle Z's change. I'm still surprised by some of the things they do, and if you guys are uncomfortable with them talking to you, I'm sure I can tell them to back off."
Grover and Annabeth looked at one another, and shook their heads.
"No, I- I don't want them to stop. I'm just frazzled by the change."
Annabeth said.
"Yeah, I think I can get used to it. I might be able to talk to this Pan, and get more clues on where the Pan I know may have gone."
"That's another thing. I'm worried what my mother might think about all of this. I know the Fates did something to stop their involvement, but they're probably going to know soon. And when they do. . .I don't know. It's not like I'm attached to these gods or anything, but they seem so nice. I don't want them to get hurt because of us."
"It'll be okay. We'll figure it out when we get there. For now, let's just try and get used to the gods here, and hopefully get through this set without having all of our deepest darkest secrets exposed."
Percy responded, placing a hand on Annabeth's shoulder.
Annabeth smiled back at him, tentatively, and Grover huffed a laugh.
"That's not going to be easy. You're really noisy when you want to be."
He snarked. Percy grinned back at him, not refuting the statement in the slightest.
As if on cue, the gods walked back in, Dionysus looking the least happy with the situation. He dragged his feet over to the kids, and without warning, plopped himself right down next to them.
Pan joined him, taking up their other side, which left Poseidon no room to join his son, instead walking back over to his siblings.
Aphrodite, realizing the middle had gotten crowded, joined Hephaestus and the war children in the back. Hermes crawled over to Apollon, and plopped in front of him instead, causing Artemis to giggle and ruffle his hair.
The three kids blinked at the newest duo added to their trio but eventually shrugged and cuddled closer together, Grover pointedly ignoring their stares once more.
With everyone settled, Percy grabbed the remote, and the screen turned back on.