#ah yes the old mythology for the English strikes again

[today-only-happens-once]

(un)claimed

Title: unclaimed

Summary: Virgil is a demigod. The good news is that he is not alone. A Percy-Jackson!AU fic. Platonic/found-family DRLAMP dynamics.

Word Count: 4217

Warnings: some violence and weapons, Greek mythology, passing mention of curses, feelings of anxiety, some self-doubt and self-deprecation, parent issues (of course, it’s a pjo!AU), no Side is a bad guy but there’s some tension between Remus and Roman, I play a little loose with PJO timeline stuff woops, Janus has done some light antagonizing of the gods.

A/N: Honestly, it should surprise nobody that I wrote this. Heh. Just for fun to release the happy chemical in my brain. Not that deep or involved. Just a light little diddy. <3 Hope you enjoy! Edited by yours truly so all mistakes are mine. No tags because it’s a fandom-specific AU, not because I don’t love y’all. <3 

///

“See that tree on the hill?”

Virgil quirks an eyebrow at the boy beside him, taking in his bright orange t-shirt and the three beads on his leather necklace. He has what Virgil would swear was snake scales across the left side of his face. Janus, he had said his name was. (Like the god? Virgil had asked. No relation. Not unless Athena has some explaining to do, the boy had told him with a wry smile as if that was somehow supposed to make sense.)

He’d met Janus four hours ago in New York in Central Park after a very weird encounter with a cyclops. Though if he’s being honest, the cyclops had only been the most recent run-in with vicious creatures out of his mother’s old Greek myth anthology. He’d been ducking and dodging and outrunning them for nearly a year at this point. Janus had appeared seemingly out of nowhere, sliced the cyclops with a dagger and it vanished in a puff of gold dust.

Then Janus told him he knew a safe place to go. Perhaps he was an idiot, but Virgil had followed without much objection. The idea of a place that was safe was nearly too good to be true, but Janus had just dusted a cyclops. And Virgil figured there was at least some power in numbers, if nothing else.

Virgil follows where the other boy is pointing and sees a tall pine tree at the top of the steep hill. He nods.

“Go there. You’ll see a camp in the valley. Chiron will explain.”

“Chiron?”

“Yes. Activities director. You can trust him.”

“You’re not coming too?” Virgil looks at the boy beside him again. Janus is looking in the opposite direction of the tree back the way they’d come and he yanks the dagger out of his belt.

Janus’s mouth twitches. “We’ve got company. I will hold them off. The border is protected. You’ll be safe once you cross the tree line.”  

Alarmed, Virgil looks over his shoulder and sees a winged creature in the distance. It looks almost a like a bat, if a bat could be the size of a human person. “What is that?!”

Janus gives a slight shove to Virgil’s shoulder. “Run, Virgil!”

“I can’t leave you behind—”

Janus mutters something that sounds foreign, and yet Virgil understands it. A curse word in… was that ancient Greek? Virgil isn’t given time to process it before Janus grabs Virgil’s arm and takes off at a sprint up the hill. Virgil stumbles but he manages to keep his feet under him as he takes off at a run for the looming pine. As they get closer, Virgil chances a glance over his shoulder. The winged creature is maybe twenty yards away. It’ll be on them any second.

Janus whistles sharply. “Hey! We got incoming!”

Seemingly out of nowhere, three other kids appear from near the tree. One of them notches an arrow in an honest-to-gods bow. He aims, then releases. Virgil watches, stunned, as the blow strikes true and the winged creature vanishes in a puff of gold dust that gets caught in the breeze.

Virgil rests his hands on his knees as he catches his breath. Janus, beside him, is breathing hard as well but he nods to the kid with the bow and arrow.

“Nice shot,” Virgil tells him.

The kid looks to be maybe a year older than Virgil, and is wearing a t-shirt that matches Janus’s. He’s also got a necklace of beads, though his has five of them. Virgil realizes that some of them match Janus’s, plus a few more. He slings the bow across his back and flashes Virgil a bright grin.

“Thanks! I’m Sloane.” He extends his hand.

“Virgil.” He shakes the kid’s hand.

Sloane nods to the other two kids that had materializes near him. One of them is a girl that looks a little younger than Virgil, maybe 14, with dark hair pulled back into a ponytail. The other is a guy in a backwards baseball cap and a plaid shirt over the orange tee that looks about Sloane’s age. His necklace only has one bead on it.

“This is Valerie,” Sloane introduces. “She’s from Cabin 10. And this is Kai. He’s from Cabin 9.”

“Sloane,” Janus interrupts. “Where’s Chiron?”

Sloane jerks his head down the hill. “In the Big House with the lead counselors.”

Virgil watches Janus’s brow furrow. “Seems unusual. Did something happen?”

Valerie sighs. “Kind of. Dionysus gave one of his kids a quest. Counselors are meeting about the prophecy to see who is going.”

Janus’s eyebrows shoot up in surprise. “Which one?”

“Jack. The prophecy mentions a death. That never bodes well, and kids aren’t exactly lining up to work for Mr. D.”

Janus hums thoughtfully, his eyes trailing over the crest of the hill. Virgil watches as he shoves the knife into his belt. Kai cocks his head slightly, studying Virgil closely. Then, he looks at Janus. “Has he been claimed?”

Virgil frowns. “Claimed?”

“No,” Janus tells Kai, then looks to Virgil. “Follow me. I’ll explain as we walk.”

Janus nods to the other three and Virgil follows him down to the valley below. From this vantage point, Virgil sees the cabins Janus has been talking about, forming something like a horseshoe shape. In front of it is a large building that Virgil assumes is the ‘Big House’ that Sloane had mentioned. He sees other buildings and structures, but decides to wait to ask about them.

People mill around, most of them wearing the orange t-shirt that has a winged horse and the words Camp Half-Blood printed on them. When they notice Virgil, most of them throw a curious glance to Janus. Janus doesn’t even seem to notice.

“Welcome to Camp Half-Blood,” Janus says as they walk. “It’s one of the few safe spaces left for demigods like us.”

“Wait,” Virgil says, certain that he heard Janus incorrectly. “Demigod?”

Janus glances at him. “Hm. I gather you really don’t know very much. Yes, demigod. Half-god, half-mortal.”

“And you think I’m one of these, uh, half-bloods?” Virgil shakes his head. “Listen, I think you’ve got the wrong guy.”

Janus looks almost amused now, an eyebrow arching almost like a challenge. “You couldn’t have gotten across the border into camp if you weren’t. Let me guess… you have ADHD and dyslexia.”

“Wh—I mean, yes, but—”

“You were raised by either a single parent or no parent at all,” Janus continues.

“My mom, until—”

“You see things others either don’t see or don’t remember.”

“I—”

“Please. Do stop me if I’m wrong.”

Virgil falls silent, his chest a bit tight. He crosses his arms over his chest as they walk.

Janus waits for a beat before he elaborates, sounding like it’s a spiel he’s given a dozen times already. “The ADHD is the battle reflexes. Dyslexia is because your brain is wired for ancient Greek, not modern English.”

Virgil’s mind is reeling. “But—”

“The things you see are because you’re a demigod. You are able to see things as they are.  Mortals—most mortals—get deceived by this thing called the Mist. Someday, with training, you’ll be able to manipulate it as well. It’s a useful skill.”

Virgil feels suddenly way too hot, and yet still has the sudden desire to pull the hood of his hoodie up over his hair. “Demigod,” he repeats, though saying it aloud doesn’t help it make sense. “Are… Are you telling me that my dad is a god? Like a Greek god? Zeus? Apollo? Those guys?”

Janus glances at him and looks, for a split second, almost apologetic. “I understand that it’s a lot to take in at once. This is why Chiron usually takes the initiation. He usually has a more, ah, sensitive means of broaching the subject. But since he’s meeting with the lead counselors, I’m afraid the responsibility falls to me.”

Virgil blinks. He can feel the pressure in his chest building and he forces himself to take a breath. It doesn’t help as much as he’d been hoping it would. “Which one?”

“Hm?”

“Which god is my dad?”

They’re passing in front of the Big House now. There’s two people standing on the front porch—a blonde girl holding a Yankees cap and a boy with a goatee leaning against the railing—seeming deep in conversation. The blonde girl offers Janus a small wave. Janus nods back.

“To your question, the answer is that we don’t know,” he says. “Since you haven’t been claimed yet, your guess is as good as ours. But you might be claimed any minute now, or never claimed at all. I was claimed three days after arriving at camp by Athena. But we have several campers who haven’t been claimed at all. Remy Short is one such example.”

“Athena. Goddess of wisdom and strategy,” Virgil remembers. He’d read that name in his mother’s library when he was younger. And he has a vague memory from sixth grade social studies.

“Indeed,” Janus replies. They circle around the house and Virgil realizes that Janus is leading him towards the semi-circle of cabins. “Since you haven’t been claimed yet, you’re designated to Cabin 11. Hermes’ cabin.”

“Janus!” A bright, cheerful voice calls from behind them. Janus stops and turns, and Virgil follows his gaze. A boy that looks about Virgil’s age, maybe a year older, is running towards them from the Big House. He’s got a flop of curly hair and big round glasses.

“Patton,” Janus greets as the boy slows to a stop near them. “Virgil, this is Patton. He’s the head of the Hermes cabin.”

Patton grins and holds out his hand. “Hi, Virgil. Welcome to Cabin 11. I’ll talk to Chiron about getting you some supplies—”

“I’ll talk to Chiron,” Janus interrupts as Virgil shakes Patton’s hand. “I need to ask him about some things anyway. Patton, could you—”

“For sure,” Patton agrees readily. “I’ll show Virgil around!”

Janus excuses himself and starts towards the Big House. Virgil rubs the back of his neck and offers Patton an awkward smile.  Now that he’s closer, Virgil realizes that Patton is maybe an inch or so shorter than him. He’s got four beads on his necklace.  

“How ya doing?” Patton asks him, startling him out of his thoughts. Virgil meets his eyes. Patton’s are a warm brown, and his smile is sympathetic. “I remember my first day at camp. It’s always overwhelming.”

Virgil huffs. “Yeah, you could say that.”

“You’ll love it here,” Patton says with a surprising amount of confidence.

Virgil arcs a skeptical eyebrow. “I’ve heard that before. I don’t seem to, ah, stay in one place very long.”

“Kicked out of school?” Patton guesses. He starts walking around the cabins and Virgil follows, slipping his hands into the pocket of his hoodie.

“Yeah. Several times.”

“We all have,” Patton says, not unkindly. “That’s the best thing about camp. In the mortal world, we’re all labeled as weird or outcasts. But at camp? We’ve all been through it. Oh! This is Cabin 10. Aphrodite’s cabin.”

Patton walks Virgil around the semi-circle, explaining each cabin’s assigned deity. He adds that Cabins 1 through 3 are empty, though apparently there was a girl that used to be in Cabin 1—Zeus’s cabin—who joined the Hunters of Artemis and left camp. Cabin 2 was Hera’s, and since she didn’t have children, the cabin was mostly honorary. Cabin 3 usually had a kid in it, but he apparently was on some kind of recon mission and wouldn’t return for another day or two. Cabin 8—Aretmis’s cabin—is also, usually, empty except when the Hunters visit.

“Since you don’t know who your dad is, you get to bunk with us at the Hermes Cabin,” Patton explains. “We take all unclaimed kids, since Hermes is the god of travelers.”

“I thought he was the god of thieves,” Virgil says before he can think about it.

Patton smiles sheepishly. “Yeah, that too. If you’ve got anything important, maybe keep it with ya. Just in case. I try to dissuade stealing, but old habits die hard for some of these kiddos.”  

Patton leads him around the camp, pointing out the strawberry fields, the armory, and the forge that mostly gets used by the Hephaestus kids. A few of them wave at Patton, who eagerly waves back and calls a few of them by name. He shows Virgil the arena, where two kids are sparring. Patton takes a seat and Virgil sits beside him, watching the two boys circle each other.

Both of them are wearing matching orange t-shirts—Patton had told him that he’d be getting one too—and some armor. One of them has dark hair and square glasses. He’s got two knives, one in each hand, and even from a bit of distance Virgil can sees the slight sheen of sweat to his forehead. The other one’s hair is a couple of shades lighter. His sleeves are rolled up and he wields a sword and a shield.

“The one with the glasses is Logan,” Patton explains. “He’s a child of Athena. The other one is Roman. He’s a child of Apollo. I met both of them in Seattle before we made our way to camp together thanks to some help from a satyr.”

“All three of you have been claimed?” Virgil asks, watching as Roman charges at Logan who rolls out of the way and then nimbly jumps back up to his feet. He slashes at Roman’s back but Roman parries the blow with a well-timed flick of the sword.

“Not immediately,” Patton says. “Logan was claimed as soon as we got to camp, but it was a month or so for me. And Roman was nearly a year before Apollo claimed him during a campfire song. It certainly surprised a lot of people.”

“Why?”

“His brother was claimed by Ares three months before him, so most people thought Roman was Ares’ kid too.”

Virgil glances at Patton. “Roman has a brother?”

Patton’s mouth presses into a thin line for a moment, and Virgil gets the sense that it’s a touchy subject. “Yeah. Remus. It’s unusual for two kids of the same family to both be demigods, and the fact that their father are two different gods led to some… tension. Roman and Remus don’t exactly get along.”

Virgil nods his understanding and turns his attention back to the sparring pair. Roman blocks a quick slash from Logan with his shield and swipes at him with the sword, but Logan parries the blow with the other knife in his hands. Then in a series of quick movements—Virgil isn’t sure how it happens, exactly—Roman is flat on his back and Logan is on his chest with the knife to his throat.

Roman says something that Virgil can’t make out, and Logan says something in kind before he climbs off Roman and helps him up. Roman flashes a grin and shoves Logan’s shoulder before he glances past his sparring match and sees Patton and Virgil sitting on one of the benches.

Roman waves. “Heya, Padre!”

Logan glances over his shoulder and quirks an eyebrow at Virgil but stores his daggers as Roman jogs over. Patton stands and Virgil follows him down to meet Roman halfway.

“Hey, Roman,” Patton replies. “I didn’t know you started using a sword!”

Roman grabs a towel off a nearby bench and mops the sweat off his forehead. “It’s new. I’m still trying to get used to it. I think the balance is off.”

“The balance is fine,” Logan quips, stepping up beside him. “You just need more practice.”

Roman rolls his eyes but doesn’t argue. “Either way, Specs. I’ll take archery any day over waving a sharp stick around.”

“You are definitely a son of Apollo,” Logan rejoins back without malice. “And it would be unwise to only be versed in ranged attack.”

“And you are definitely a son of Athena.”

“Correct.”

Virgil snorts, and then a part of him regrets it as Roman and Logan both look over at him. Virgil flushes slightly, uncomfortable with the sudden attention, but Patton seems to only perk up more.

“Oh! Sorry, this is Virgil. He’s a new camper. Janus ran into him on his way back and brought him along.”

“Which cabin?” Logan asks.

Virgil shrugs. “For now, Cabin 11, I guess.”

“Unclaimed, then.” Virgil listens for the judgement in Logan’s voice, but he doesn’t hear it. It sounds more like a flat statement of fact, as if reporting the weather. Logan nods once. “Very well.”

“I was just showing him around,” Patton supplies. “You guys wanna join?”

Logan starts shrugging out of the armor he’s wearing. “Regrettably, I said that I would assist Harley with some blueprints when I had finished sparring with Roman.”

Roman slides the sword into the scabbard at his side. “And I’m overdue for a Pegasus lesson. I can’t miss it again. The last thing I need is Mr. D giving me another earful.” Roman gives a quick two-finger salute and rushes out of the arena.

Virgil blinks at Patton. “Pegasus?”

Patton grins brightly. “Come on. I’ll show ya.”

…

Patton spends the rest of the afternoon showing Virgil around the camp. They go to the stables (where Roman offers to take Virgil for a ride but Virgil immediately declines because he’s never been a fan of flying). They swing by the beach on their way to the climbing wall. Virgil watches, amazed, as two kids climb with impressive speed and narrowly avoid the magma that starts to pour down it.

One of the kids has a Morningstar gripped between his teeth, a green bandana around his upper bicep and a matching one around his head. He’s fast, scaling the wall with a well-practiced ease. Virgil hears him laugh delightedly when his hand slips and he almost gets burned by the lava. It’s somehow both impressive and disconcerting.

“That would be Remus.”

“That’s Remus?” Virgil repeats, though when he looks a bit closer he sees the similarity in hair color and skin complexion. “I guess I see the resemblance.”

“Don’t tell Roman that,” Patton says lightly. “C’mon.”

They pass the amphitheater where, apparently, there would be a bonfire tonight. Patton shows him the volleyball court where four kids are playing one another. They wave at Patton as they pass.

“You seem popular,” Virgil supplies. He’s lost track of how many kids have waved at them as they walk around.

Patton lifts a shoulder modestly. “I dunno. Since Hermes is the catch-all cabin, a lot of camp knows me since they come to our cabin if they haven’t been claimed yet. Sometimes we get kids that get claimed right away, or kids that already have been claimed, but otherwise? I get to be their lead counselor for at least a little bit.”

“Sounds like a lot of responsibility.”

“I kind of like it,” Patton admits with a smile. “It’s like I’m everyone’s honorary camp dad.”

The conversation cuts out as dinner is called and they head to the mess hall. Patton explains the offering to the gods prior to the meal, and Virgil scrapes part of his plate into the fire. He doesn’t know what to ask for.

It’d be nice to have a family again, dad, he thinks, unsure of who he should even direct the comment to. Patton waves him over, offering a seat beside him.

Virgil chances a glance around the mess hall as they eat. The Hermes table is certainly the most crowded, though Virgil can’t say he finds that surprising. Athena’s table has several kids reading while eating. Two kids at the Ares table are in the middle of an arm-wrestling competition. One kid at the Hephaestus table is pouring over a blueprint, and Virgil wonders if that was the Harley kid that Logan had mentioned.

Towards the end of the meal, a few kids at the Apollo table starts singing “Bohemian Rhapsody” and it’s not long before most of their table is doing the entire song with harmony. Someone from the Demeter table tells them to ‘save it for the campfire’, but it does nothing to deter the Apollo kids. Virgil catches Roman laughing as he sings, one of his sibling’s arms slung around his shoulders.

Virgil glances over and sees Logan at the Athena table sitting next to Janus, watching the chaos unfold and the faintest quirk of his lips betray his amusement.

Virgil feels some of the tension in his chest relax just a little.

…

The bonfire starts around dusk. Virgil is making his way to the amphitheater from dropping supplies off at the cabin when Roman comes up from behind him and loops his arm through Virgil’s, chattering excitedly about how much he loved this part of camp. Virgil sees an ukulele case slung around his shoulder.

Logan appears a second later on the other side of Virgil, commenting dryly that the Apollo kids had done their vocal warm-ups during the dinner. This only served to lead Roman to do actual vocal warm-ups—trills and scales, specifically—as they walked. Patton and Janus were already sitting down, three rows back. Patton waves when he sees them file in. Remus is sitting beside Janus, seemingly trying to goad him into some kind of competition that he was having no interest in. The firelight glints of Janus’s scales.

“Hey,” Virgil says to Roman and Logan. “Can… I ask what happened to Janus?” He immediately regrets the question, cursing his lack of a filter, but neither of the other boys seem perturbed by the question.

“A curse from Aphrodite,” Logan answers. “Janus had gone on a quest for our mother, and it led to some… unsavory tension between himself and Aphrodite. From what he’s told me, he accused Ares of being a snake in the grass while in the presence of Aphrodite, and… well. The love goddess didn’t take kindly to that. But it’s purely cosmetic.”

Virgil arcs an eyebrow. “Remus seems chill with him.”

“I’m not sure that Remus is aware of the accusation Janus leveled at his father,” Logan muses. “And Janus is not one to hold the children accountable for the actions of their godly parent.”

“It doesn’t benefit him,” Roman adds in, using his free hand for air quotes. “Or something like that. Janus is all about himself and how he can improve his own standing.”

“Sounds like someone else I know,” Logan quips dryly.

Roman scoffs, but when Virgil looks at him, there’s a teasing glint to his eyes. “Well, I wasn’t going to say it, but you guys are half-brothers for a reason.”

Logan looks at Roman over the top of his glasses, but Roman just shoots him a cheeky smile as they approach the other three. Virgil slides into the seat beside Patton, followed by Logan and then Roman. There’s a few kids—Virgil isn’t sure what cabin they’re from—trying to lead a call-and-response chant as campers file in. Down the row, Remus enthusiastically calls out the responses at the top of his lungs.

“Roman!” A new voice calls out from the end of their row. A tall guy, a couple of years older than them, is holding a ukulele and jerking his head down towards the bonfire. “You ready to help me kick this thing off?”

Roman grins and jumps up. “Would be an honor, Thomas.” He rushes off and he and Thomas start playing a song together with practiced ease. He and the other Apollo kids start singing, and before long the vast majority of campers are joining in. A few of them, including Patton, sway a little. Virgil doesn’t sing, but he listens and tries to remember the words.

The sky grows dark. The Apollo kids eventually cede the floor to some Ares kids who start up another chant. More songs are sung, some snacks get passed around, and Virgil is starting to think that maybe, with time, he could get used to this.

“Oh! I almost forgot!” Patton says beside him, as the next song starts. He drops something into Virgil’s lap. “I got this for ya.”

Virgil looks down. It’s two camp t-shirts. The black winged horse and the Camp Half-Blood print stares up at him. He looks over at Patton.

Patton just smiles. “Claimed or not, you’re one of us. We claim you.”

Virgil feels like maybe that’s good enough for him.

[perseusjackson-jasongrace]

A Summer by Your Side

Percabeth Fic

I know I can't believe it either?!?! A fic about a couple that ISNT jercy????? Who possessed me?!?

All jokes aside, this was great fun to write! Also no it's not the usual Percabeth dynamic but I kinda loved a shy-Annabeth and a sweet-Percy :)

Anyway I hope you guys enjoy and maybe I'll be able to write some jercy this weekend.

Masterlist for more crackships and other stuff

-------------------------------------------------

Ah Greece, with its bleached white walls, and ocean blue roofs; it's soft sand and cool waters. Its— goats?

"Watch out," a mop of dark hair came barreling around the corner hands reaching for the string around the animal's neck.

I jumped back, flattening myself against the wall just as the goat screamed past me.

"Stop! Don't go into the book shop please don't," The brown haired girl pleaded, still racing after the blur of white.

I ran after them, set on helping. By the time I reached the book shop however the girl had captured the goat and was angrily yanking it back up the pathway.

"Glad you caught it!" I smiled, trying to regulate my breathing after the whole two hundred meters I sprinted.

"He is the worst! He always escapes and my dumb brother makes me run after it."

The girl, I now realised, couldn't be more than eight or nine.

"I'm sorry kid, but at least you got him before he went into the store? I heard goats aren't the friendliest with paper."

"They aren't friendly with anything. Especially this old prickly pear," She scowled.

"Well how about me and you go for icecream after you deliver the package to its rightful place?" I offered.

She gave me a suspicious look, "Why would you wanna take me for icecream?"

"To thank you for warning me to get out the way." I ruffled her hair.

She swatted my hand away but grinned at me, "Okay! I'll meet you back here in two hours."

And before I could agree she was gone. I giggled at her energy and walked into the bookstore.

"Can I er, help you with something?" A rich voice broke through my haze.

"I must look like a tourist huh?" I laughed, turning around to face....the most beautiful person I had ever seen.

Thick dark hair stuck up in all angles. Ocean green eyes that stared into the deepest parts of you. A white shirt that offset the burnt golden of his skin.

I cleared my throat, "Wow, I'm sorry, yea I'm looking for a book on Greek culture? My friend wants it for her project."

He smirked at my eye roll, "I see, well you'd be in the wrong section for culture since it's on that side." He pointed to a shelf on the far end of the store, grinning.

"Right uh well, I suppose trying to read the labels when you don't understand any Greek is a bit pointless." I smiled sheepishly.

"How about I pick out a book for your friend and then give you a tour of the English section?" Mirth danced in those emerald eyes.

I frowned at his amusement but nodded, following after him.

"Now tell me, what do you like to read?"

We walked through the isles and he gave me his insights on the best Greek fiction. I told him about my ever growing collection at home.

"The shop is my collection. I share a room with my little sister. We barely have enough space for us, nevermind a shelf of books."

I laughed, "Well this is a pretty impressive collection Mr....."

"Percy, my name is Percy." He smiled softly.

"Annabeth," I tucked a stray curl behind my ear.

"Wow that is beautiful. You are beautiful,"

I blushed, thanking him.

"How about we go for dinner tomorrow night?"

My eyes grew as wide as saucers, "Like a date?"

His eyes danced with amusement, "Yes a date, kardiá mu."

"Okay, and what does cah- car-" I fumbled over the greek word, "What does that word mean?"

He simply smiled at me, turning to walk to the counter. Before I could protest the small girl from before waltzed into the shop.

"Hello, I'm ready for ice-cream!"

"Estelle what are you doing here? You're supposed to be at the goat house." Percy scolded.

"Your dumb goat got out again and I had to catch it. This nice lady said she'd take me for icecream because I made sure the goat didn't hurt her." The little girl, who fast took on a striking resemblance to Percy, huffed.

"You two are siblings?" I piped up

Percy nodded, still surveying little Estelle

"Fine if she offered then you can go, but don't forget you have to help mom with the gyros tonight."

"Yea yea," She grumbled before grabbing my hand and yanking me out.

"Must we bring you back a cone?" I managed to yell to Percy.

"Chocolate please!"

And then Estelle and I were gone, racing to the icecream hut a few roads down.

Over the next weeks, while my friend researched for her project, lazed around the villa, and sauntered down to the beach every few days I spent more and more time at the bookshop.

Percy and I never ran out of things to talk about. I learnt that he had grown up in Santorini but moved to Naxos when he was 16, for an internship with his Dad. He's been here ever since. In return I told him about life as a city girl and how I fell in love with Greece for the cheesy reason that Greek Mythology was one of my favourite subjects.

He showed me around the island, and spoiled me with icecream and books. We were often buried up on the beanbags in the bookshop, him reading to me or I to him. Sometimes we'd take Estelle to the arcade or watch her at the skate park.

One day about six weeks into the summer he and I managed to grab some food and a blanket and decided to have a picnic on the beach.

He laid out the checkered cloth and nestled the basket in one corner before grabbing my hand and pulling me down towards him.

I laughed as I fell into him, but settled comfortably by his side.

He turned to me, a smile tugging at his lips.

"Your eyes kardiá mu, are so beautiful."

I immediately looked away, already trying to deny the compliment.

He lifted my chin with his finger so I was staring at him again, "You do not have to look away from me. You are so gorgeous and you should know it."

I smiled at him, "Thank you. And I hope you know I think you're gorgeous too."

"Yes, I know," He smirked, "You were blushing like a ruby the first time we met."

I smacked his chest but laughed, "Horrible tease."

He laughed with me, and I watched in awe as his eyes sparkled like the ocean, hair flopping over his face.

I couldn't resist the urge to lean over and kiss that smile. Before I knew it my lips were on his and the world had ended.

He returned it in equal passion, pulling me towards him until our bodies were flush against each other.

"I am so glad you did that," He husked.

"Me too," I breathed.

And with his answering grin the new world began.

The last weeks of summer rolled by in a blur of fruit platters, book chats, icecream dates and beach walks. Before we knew it I was shoving my last dress into my bag and ruffling Estelle's hair for the last time.

Percy and I promised to stay in touch, but it did not make saying goodbye any easier.

Our summer had finally come to a close; I was due back in the big city to start on my honours year and he was about to start on renovations for his mom's bookstore.

Our last hug lasted for many minutes as all our moments squashed themselves between us.

"Thank you for everything Percy." Tears pricked my eyes.

"I will miss you, kardiá mu."

I huffed a laugh at the familiar nickname and decided to ask one more time, "What does it mean?"

He put my hand to his chest, and let me feel the beating drums.

"This is what it means."

"My heart," I echoed softly, looking up at him in awe.

He simply drew me in for another hug, kissing my forehead.

"Until we meet again."

"Until then," I nodded.

I stepped onto the boat that would take me home.

[aeon-wolf]

Ascension - Chapter 1

Demos Educational Organization was like no other college Lena could have imagined. Instead of reading, math, and science, they were taught Ancient Greek, War Strategy, and Swordsmanship. Lena, shocked to find out her true parentage strikes friendships left and right at her new school. Her most treasured friendship of all, her friendship with one Daughter of Zeus, Kara Danvers. Follow Lena on a journey of self-discovery in an attempt to foil the plot of the Titans, and maybe learn a few things about herself along the way.

Or

A PJO inspired Supercorp series. Part One: Ascension.

Read it here on AO3

I.

Lena was dropped off at the entrance to Demos Educational Organization. A college that until recently, she didn’t know existed. She stared up at the large building in front of her, closed off by some large, almost intimidating looking fences. Her driver helped her get her things out of the car, offering to help her inside. But Lena just waved him off. “Don’t worry about it, I’m sure I can manage.” The man nodded, tipping his hat to the youngest Luthor.

When Lena had been scouting out colleges her junior year of high school, Lionel had stopped her almost immediately.

“Lena.” He sat her down one afternoon after she arrived home from school. He handed her a brochure. She accepted it, giving it a once over. It seemed to be a brochure for a college, Demos Educational Organization. An odd name for a college, but she just shrugged it off. “I know that you’re smart enough to get into pretty much any college you want to, but it was the wish of your birth mother for you to go here.” A 16-year-old Lena Luthor met Lionel’s gaze. He rarely spoke of her birth family. She wanted to ask how he knew that, but she knew better than to question.

“But what about…” Lena started, but Lionel cut her off, knowing what she was going to ask.

“Lillian won’t be an issue. I’ll be discussing this with her later.” Lena nodded curtly.

“How do you know I’ll get accepted?” She asked him. He just chuckled.

“Trust me, dear, they won’t turn you away.” He said, giving her a knowing look. Lena blinked but accepted the answer. She figured it was because she was a Luthor. No college would probably dare turn away such an influential family. She did wonder, however, why she was being sent to Demos when Lex had gone to Harvard. But again, she didn’t question it. In the back of her mind, she figured it was because she wasn’t a real Luthor.

“Hey! You new here?” Lena was startled out of her thoughts to see a guy with messy brown hair and a friendly smile on his face. Lena nodded, offering him her hand. He took it and gave her a firm shake.

“I’m Winn! Winn Schott. I’m a junior here.” He said. “You are?” He asked, tilting his head to the side.

“Lena Luthor.” She waited for the realization to dawn on him of who he was talking to, but it never came. He just nodded.

“Well Lena, since I caught you out here, do you want help with your stuff? Or something? Do you know where you’re headed?” Lena shook her head.

“I’m afraid I don’t know much. My acceptance letter just said welcome and all the normal pleasantries. And that someone would show me around when I got to campus.” She said with a shrug. Winn nodded.

“Ah. I remember my first day.” He chuckled as if he was sharing a private joke with himself. “Well, first you’ll probably want to go see Headmaster J’onn. He’ll walk you through orientation. And get you set up.” Lena nodded, frowning slightly.

“Does the headmaster do that for every student?” She inquired as Winn bent down to pick up one of her bags. He nodded when he straightened back up.

“Yeah. If you didn’t already know, we’re a pretty… exclusive college. We don’t get too many new students and J’onn wants to get to know all of us personally.” Winn replied as Lena went to pick up the rest of her bags.

“Oh. That’s nice of him.” Lena said as she followed Winn past the gates. Winn grinned.

“Yeah, J’onn’s awesome. Just wait. I’m sure you’ll end up loving it here. Never want to go home.” Winn said brightly. Lena grimaced, knowing all how true that probably was. She enjoyed Lionel’s presence, but he was gone on business more often than not and ever since Lex had gone off to college, it was just Lena and Lillian. And to say that Lillian didn’t like Lena was an understatement.

The two chatted about arbitrary topics for the duration of the walk to the headmaster’s office. Winn was talking to her about the new student dorm. “Baker Hall is pretty nice.” He said with a shrug. “A little crowded at times, but it’s not too bad. Hopefully, you’ll be moved out of there soon.” Lena raised an eyebrow but didn’t question it. Hopefully, the headmaster would be able to answer some of the questions she was starting to develop after her conversation with Winn.

“Well, here we are!” Winn said as the pair stopped outside a large wooden door. Winn just opened the door without knocking. “Hey J’onn, Lena Luthor is here!” He said, beckoning for Lena to follow him. She walked into the office, putting on the Luthor air of presence. Before her sat a tall black man, with hard but kind eyes. He nodded at Winn.

“Thank you, Mr. Schott, I can take it from here.” Winn nodded, setting Lena’s suitcase down, turning to the woman.

“Come find me later! I can introduce you to some of my friends.” He said brightly before leaving and shutting the door behind him. The headmaster gestured for her to sit down in a chair facing him, which she did. He blinked, looking at her as if appraising her.

“So, welcome to Demos Educational Organization, Ms. Luthor. DEO for short. I’m sure you’re wondering why you’ve never heard of this school until your father brought it up.” Lena nodded in response. “Tell me Ms. Luthor, have you ever found yourself seeing and experiencing things that you know are impossible? Seen monsters that are only found in myth. I’m going to hazard a guess that you’ve been diagnosed with ADHD and dyslexia.”

“No, sir. Actually, I haven’t been.” J’onn frowned slightly but nodded.

“Interesting. You’ll be one of the first students here who hasn’t been.” Lena frowned. Was she at a school for the mentally disabled? As if being able to read her mind, J’onn spoke again.

“Rest assured, you’re in the right place. Tell me, what do you know of Greek Mythology?” Lena shrugged.

“Maybe about as much as the average person. We had a section in one of my English classes in high school about it. But not much else.” Lena said, wondering where this conversation was going.

“And if I told you that it wasn’t all a myth. That everything was real?” Lena furrowed her brow.

“I’d say you were probably nuts,” Lena replied. J’onn laughed.

“That’s what I said too when I was your age. But believe me, it’s all real.” Lena gave J’onn a skeptical look. “I see you’re someone who needs a bit more of a demonstration.” J’onn furrowed his brow in concentration.

Lena’s jaw dropped when the headmaster was suddenly enveloped in a glowing aura, flickering a fiery red color. He then opened one of the drawers of his desk, taking a small knife out of it. Before Lena could stop him, he thrust it into his hand. Lena watched as the knife bounced right off the aura, coming away bent before the aura faded. “The Blessing of Ares,” J’onn said. “A gift from my father, given to those that have demonstrated great courage. It makes me invulnerable for a short time, hence the bent knife. I can assure you Ms. Luthor, the more you see of the school, the more you will believe that I am telling you the truth.”

Lena bit her lip. In all honesty, it made sense to her. It would explain all the odd creatures that she had seen throughout her life. She had never talked to anyone about it because if word got out that the Luthor’s youngest daughter was seeing things, well. Lillian would have her head. So she kept quiet about it. Lena just nodded.

“I can see that.” She said. “So you’re saying…” Lena trailed off and J’onn nodded.

“One of your parents was a Greek God. Yes. From what I understand, you don’t know your birth parents?” Lena shook her head.

“No, they were killed and I was adopted by the Luthors when I was four. Lionel did say though that my birth mother wanted me to come here, though if that helps?” Lena offered. J’onn shrugged.

“It’s possible that your mother was your godly parent. But sometimes the gods will leave mention of the school imprinted in their minds as well. Hopefully, sometime in the next few weeks, you’ll be claimed by your godly parent. For now, though, you’ll be put in Baker Hall with the rest of the unclaimed. Your dorm advisor is going to be Lucy Lane. She’s the oldest of the unclaimed. She’ll walk you through the day to day procedures. But until then…” He trailed off, getting up and walking over to the door opening it and beckoning someone inside.

In stepped a tall woman with reddish brown hair. Lena stood up to greet the newcomer who offered Lena her hand. Lena accepted and shook the woman’s hand. It was a surprisingly strong grip, but Lena held her ground. “Ms. Luthor, this is Alex Danvers. She’ll be giving you a tour around the campus while we get a few things straightened out for you. Please, leave your luggage. We’ll see to it that it gets put in your new room.” Lena nodded, following Alex out the door.

“So, new blood, huh?” Alex asked. Lena nodded.

“I guess so.” Lena had so many questions, but she had no idea of what the protocol for asking them was. Was it rude to ask who a person’s godly parent was? Alex could obviously see the questions written on Lena’s face.

“I’m a daughter of Athena if you were wondering. Which you were from the look on your face.” Lena looked a little sheepish. “Don’t worry. You’ll eventually know the parentage of everyone here. There’s not a lot of us and you’ll figure it out eventually, about everyone.” Alex said reassuringly.

The two walked around the campus, Alex pointing out various different things to Lena. “So basically while you’re unclaimed, you’re going to be put into some basic classes so you can find your strengths and interests.” She said as the pair walked past the shooting ranges where there were a couple of people with a bow and arrow, shooting at the targets.

“If or when you’re claimed, you’ll be put into some more specialized classes to hone your innate abilities. Like if your father is Ares, you’ll be put in more combat and war strategy classes.” Alex said. She said something else, but Lena’s attention was drawn elsewhere. In a nearby sparring arena was a blonde haired woman with a large broadsword, fighting a tall, brown haired male.

The male seemed to be all brute strength, charging in against the blonde who was able to meet him blow for blow, and even repel his attack before he charged again. Lena’s focus was on the girl, who was so graceful in her movements, spinning and swinging a sword that almost looked too heavy for her to pick up, let alone use. Alex followed Lena’s line of sight and smiled.

“Ah. Watching my sister spar with Mon-El. It’s always an interesting thing to behold.” Lena looked at Alex.

“She’s your sister?” Lena asked, looking back at the girl.

“Yeah, that’s Kara. Danvers. A daughter of Zeus.” Lena raised an eyebrow. “I know what you’re thinking. And Kara is adopted. Her family was killed and she was adopted by my family. You’ll probably meet them sometimes, they’re teachers here.” Alex said with a shrug. Lena looked back at Kara who was now pressing an attack against Mon-El.

“She’s good,” Lena remarked and Alex nodded.

“She’s been practicing for a long time,” Alex replied as they watched Kara push Mon-El back, before advancing, their blades meeting again, but this time, Kara twisted her sword, wrenching his out of his grip, disarming him. Kara stepped back, proud of herself, looking over to see her sister. She smiled and waved at her sister before noticing Lena standing next to her. Kara tilted her head to the side for a second, looking at Lena before giving her a warm smile, waving at her too. Lena was surprised at the girl’s friendliness but waved back shyly.

She and Alex proceeded to walk over to Baker Hall, where Lena would be living. Lucy Lane, the dorm advisor was waiting for the two in the lobby. “Hey, Alex. Thanks for showing new girl around. I’ve got it from here.” Alex nodded.

“I’ll see you around Lena. Hope you enjoy it here. Don’t be a stranger.” Alex said before leaving the two girls.

“So, I’m guessing J’onn and Alex got you all caught up?” Lucy asked and Lena nodded.

“Yeah, mostly.”

“Good,” Lucy said curtly. “Your room is on the second floor, room 5. Your stuff has been brought up there already. Your schedule should be on the desk, classes start on Monday. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to come find me.” Lucy said, giving Lena a grin. “Welcome to Demos.” Lena nodded, thanking Lucy before making her way to her room.

She quickly found it, opening the door, and indeed, all her belongings were there already. Lena sighed, walking over to the desk and picking up the piece of paper that was on it. She sat on the bed to examine it. Classes like Ancient Greek and Swordsmanship. If someone had asked Lena a year ago about how her college life was going to be, this was not how she pictured it. Lena laid back on the bed, closing her eyes. It was going to be a long year.

II.

Later that evening at dinner, Lena wandered over to the cafeteria. She noticed a large brazier outside with an open flame. Lucy had told Lena earlier about it. At meals, students would sacrifice food to the gods, apparently, they liked the smell. Sometimes they offered some prayers to the gods that they hoped to be answered. Lena was a little skeptical about it, never having been religious in her life, but since everyone else was doing it, she figured she probably should too.

After she grabbed some food, she walked over to the brazier and threw in a large bunch of grapes. In her heart, she prayed that she would be claimed. Like all the other unclaimed prayed daily. That someday she would know where she belonged. Lena looked up at the sky, turning orange as the sun set.

Lena found herself wandering over to an empty spot on the quad in the middle of campus. She set her plate down on a low wall, hopping up to sit on it. As she ate her food, she watched the sun set on her first day at Demos.

So, I might have lied about what my next project was going to be. So sit tight while I explain and sorry about the long note.

I was planning on doing a Soulmate AU, but I decided after 2x12 that I wanted to see where Lena’s storyline ends up because my plans for my soulmate AU are fairly tied to canon. So I wanted to wait on that one. So I wanted to pick another project.

And that’s where this came from. I wrote the outline to this story about six months ago or so, for a different ship that I was writing about at the time. But as I’ve really been writing exclusively about Supercorp for the last couple of months, I decided I wanted to repurpose that outline for Supercorp. And in all honesty, the storyline actually fits this pairing better than the original pairing it was written for.

That being said, this is going to be a very Lena centric story. It details her coming into her heritage and follows her journey. Supercorp will be the main pairing, but it’s going to be a slowburn relationship and as I already know there’s going to be a sequel, well. I’ll let you figure out where their relationship it going to be at the end of this part.

Sanvers is going to be a background pairing here, hence why it’s not tagged as a main pairing, because I’m not focusing on it that much. Also, if you’re looking for a story that’s going to bash Mon-El, you might not be reading the right story. I’m not going to go into detail here, inbox me on Tumblr if you’d like further explanation, but he’s going to have a pretty large role here. Of all the characters I’ve written, he’s probably going to be the most OOC from canon because while I really want to like him, his character is written in such a way that I just can’t support him. So I tried to fix his character writing.

Some small housekeeping details of canon deviation: Ignore that Lionel is Lena’s birth father. Lena is indeed 2 years younger than Kara here, 18 vs 20. I’ve aged everyone up from typical canon ages of Percy Jackson for convenience. In my story, one’s godly powers tend to start manifesting around college, rather than middle/high school. The canon events of PJO haven’t happened, hence why I don’t refer to this as a crossover, rather a PJO inspired Supercorp story.