#and how Percy and Piper parallel too

[booksanddarkchocolate]

Both Annabeth and Jason are AuDHD imo but Annabeths adhd is more prominent and Jasons autism is more prominent

[somewhereincairparavel]

Alright. I came across someone saying that Rick "put Jason in a pedestal" and "overhyped" him by emphasizing how good looking he is and that Jason shouldn't have been so attractive looking. (Tbf tho that person made it sound like they seemed more mad bc their least favourite character was considered good looking lol) but I'll yap about the significance here anyways. Beware of a very long yapping session below.

I do understand their frustration though, because jason getting told that he looks good all the time makes it seem very shallow and unfair to the others.

And let me tell you, Jason is SUPPOSED to be gorgeous looking in everyone's eyes. He is supposed to be conventionally handsome, Rick didn't intend for his looks to be "beauty is in the eyes of the beholder " or something like Percy's (like how Piper didn't find him as impressive) Percy's is supposed to be more authentic. Percy's character isnt centred in people idolizing him, everyone can acknowledge that he's handsome looking, but it isn't in a "perfect" type of way, he's a carefree spirit and that reflects on his looks. While Jason is hardwired as this ethereal looking hero in people's eyes that not even ONE can deny that he looks good, bc ppl in Rome had set him as the "standard". Jason said this before in the lost hero, that him being a son of Jupiter, makes him feel like the support he gets is only because his dad is a very regal and intimidating figure.

That's kind of the whole point, he's supposed to look like this perfect man who can do no wrong. His "Golden noble boy" arc is literally the whole concept of his character. Why else do you think rick wrote Aphrodite approving of Jason's looks saying that he needed no improvement (which she rarely does) ?

Because Jason is supposed to be put like a statue to admire and idolize, that's ALSO why rick made sure to add that Jason looks like a Roman sculpture, bc that's like a metaphor for his inner conflicts. The guy was put like an artifact for people to ogle at in camp Jupiter ever since he was a kid of 4. That's part of the tragedy.

Annabeth said it perfectly “Annabeth tried to hide it, but she still didn’t completely trust the guy. He acted too perfect - always following the rules, always doing the honorable thing. He even looked too perfect. In the back of her mind, she had a nagging thought. What if this is a trick and he betrayed us?” Mark of Athena, page 6.

His mother, whom he's supposed to look like, is also a literal world wide tv actress. So you can't expect anything less either.

Also, Jason is supposed to mirror Percy. And let's be real. Rick put Percy in a VERY high pedestal looks wise, aswell, Not just Jason. And that's okay.

Rick made Hazel mistake Percy for a literal god because he was just that good looking (tbf, in a way, when I was younger, I found this to be a little bit of an exaggeration, bro was covered in mud and seaweed and was compared to a god, it was rlly funny to a 10 year old me 😭 yeah but don't mind this though, this was just a younger me jealous that I couldn't be as pretty as Percy was in mud lol) If Percy can be "hyped" up so "unrealistically" in that particular situation then so can Jason. They are both literal half gods, so unrealistic praise is very normal) and rick also made sure to emphasize that almost all the teen characters had a crush on Percy. So apparently that isn't called putting a character in a pedestal but Jason's is? They are BOTH put in pedestals, because they're both heroes.

Jason and Percy are supposed to be equals, so both of them being in the top two when it comes to looks makes SENSE. Because people are supposed to argue about who is better looking, since they're written as foils.

You cannot expect rick to make Percy look like a god and Jason look like a rat 😭 then there's no point of having them as parallels if one has the upper hand in something. Rick did a good job by conveying that they are BOTH attractive, but in different ways. That's why the Percy/Jason looks debate always have mixed answers.

Jason getting complimented by Aphrodite, the GODDESS of beauty, for his looks and her saying that he didn't have anything to "fix" in his face BC it already looks gorgeous = Percy getting compared to a gorgeous Roman god by hazel. They are both equal comparisons in slightly different tones.

[punkeropercyjackson]

Percy's version of lingerie would be a sports bra. A tank top even. She strikes me as a practical girl first and foremost. Percy doesn't strike me as a person who really cares for delicate fancy things - especially considering her upbringing. She likes girly stuff, but I don't her enjoying too much lingerie. It's like how she loves the sea, but wouldn't particularly want to decorate herself in it. I'm not sure how to put it into words, but Percy appreciates the sea and it's power - similar to how Piper feels about love, and its power.

YES YOU'RE SO RIGHT AS ALWAYS YOUR PJO TAKES ARE SO GOOD And the comparison is perfect too,because Piper and Aphrodite's feelings on eachother parallel Percy and Poseidon's!And for Percy's brand of femininity,i want to add on that she's the specific kind of femme who subverts cishet people's idea of femininity.Blues instead of pinks,punk instead of traditional with the exception of loving her afro-dominican heritage,Team Mom instead of an 'overbearing no fun nag' stereotype,interests in kiddy and cutesy things instead of focusing on what's 'normal',high standards for men because she knows her self-worth and a very low interest in anything sexual or romantic.She's autistic and giving aroaceflux bi vibes and the closest thing to a standard girl thing she has is liking being called 'Doll' and even then she lets exactly two people call her that and it's Sally and her boyfriend(who varies depending on my mood).Oh and before i forget,i should note that i'm almost certain the person who suggested her in that corset didn't even headcanon her as transfem like we do😭This is not invalidating your points but me saying it's wild asf how the fandom will feminize Percy to be horny about her but balks at her actually being a woman

[aristia-pjoheadcanons]

Hi! Sorry for bothering, but I was wondering if you could make some headcanons of Jason dating a daughter of Hecate who loves reading (after he breaks up with Piper), please?

I belong to cabin 20th and it's kind of bad that there isn't much representation of these demigods on the fandom 😓

Thank you so much because your amazing headcanons are making the waiting for the series release so much bearable 😊

Lots of love, take care 🫶🏼

authors note: oh my gosh, daughter of hecate? yes, please. I headcanon myself as a child of hecate too y'know.

pairings: jason grace x hecate reader

warnings: none

->masterlist

Jason Grace dating a Child of Hecate

art by Viria

Jason Grace is not a difficult guy, he just slightly complex when it comes to the way he shows he cares for others.

Since Hecate is basically the goddess of sorcery, magic, and everything in that box - you're abilities are quite open and great. A child of HECATE WOULD BE VERY USEFUL IN BATTLE, considering the fact that their magic leaves them pretty flexible and open.

Jason is a strategist, he plans ahead of time and can think of a lot of plans with just your powers. a formiddle force the two of you make

the two of you cause a storm whenever you fight

i imagine that he is somewhat quiet, even if he is a leader he's not as socially outward as you think. he is social, but it takes time for him to warm-up. he puts people in categorizes on how much of his plans can he tell them, and how much can he not. but with you, he shares everything.

he wants you to be comfortable. feeling at home, somewhere safe, is a dream jason has in his mind. he dreams of the future with you. he is a protecter, a fierce one, not minding if he has to bare his teeth in order to do so - he doesnt even mind hurting his own reputation since he can fix it quickly.

im sorry, but i see jason as a parallell captain america, i cant help but imagine him in that costume. make him dress up as him during halloween.

sweet, caring and daring. he isnt the most bold with pda, kissing or touching you the way percy might do. but he is willing to take the leap of faith to kiss you when the moment is right, subconsciously find a place for the two of you so he can kiss you in private. he prefers the idea of a solitute that is safe.

i feel like when he fell for you he'd give you a nice small smile from time to time, and he kept doing it everytime you made eye-contact since you gave him that beautiful smile back.

charming, not just because of his leader position (which makes him hot and commanding ngl), but because he is confident in his movements even if its techniqally his "first time".

this guy is both an owl and a chameleon

his way of showing he likes you is keeping an eye on you. he knows better than anyone that people need space, especially him. but he likes to analyze the type of person you are and what type of character you have. if you are a very touchy, cheerful, charismatic person then he wouldn't mind switching and copying that to become closer to you.

this guy has no issue changing the personality he has, because to him it doesn't change who he is. his goals, accomplishments are all the same. he is kind-off used to change. lupa's training program, romans making him a preator when he didn't really want that position, becoming a hero, losing his memories, loving piper and losing her, joining camp half-blood and staying there from time to time, learning how to become friends with different people - even if he is similar to them ex. annabeth and percy.

sorry if i'm projecting my personal hc of my oc, but i like the idea of being able to summon monsters from card decks ex. mythomagic. like monsters from the dead/necromancy (that you/your team has killed) or being able to summon anything from a card that has a picture of the entity ex. minotaur.

they can use shadows to create a barrier as a shield or a barrier of invinsibility.

jinxes, hexes and curses similar to harry potter can be casted. the time you hexed someone bc they insulted your friend was the day you heard jason grace laugh with his loud voice.

when jason laughs you can hear his chest and throat vibrate. idk how to explain it other than it being manly.

cursing their opponents to make them weaker, forcing their opponents to relieve a really embarassing moment in their life which will make them frozen on the spot.

jasons voice has a deep timbre, its kind of gruff in situations where hes holding back his anger or frustration - he really has trained subconsciously to make his voice steady.

the deep timbre can be intimidating since when he speaks, his voice has a sense of authority and dephr that commands respect.

his voice can be very gentle and sweet and soothing, but sometimes a little too loud. i feel like he cant really whisper. his voice is deep that the sound carries through the air since his voice has a natural badd-heavy quality to it. which makes his voice more loud, enhanced in a way, especially in enclosed spaces, small rooms or inside of a car because his voice resonates and the sound travels farther.

his assertivness disappears slightly when he speaks to you. tbh its pleasurable when he speaks in your ear its just to easy to close your eyes and relax when he talks.

why do i feel like he can crush an apple with his hands? either way, he has a big heart which is bigger than his biceps.

because hes so reflective he asks deep questions, dont be surprised if you end up talking to him for more than 4 hours, he is very attentive and sensitive to your body language - alwasy reading them to make sure you're enjoying the conversation.

when things get tough, he will place a warm palm on the center of your back as a way to reassure you but also to reassure himself that you're okay.

he asks thoughtful questions and is keen to learn more about your connection to the underworld. combining forces would be great but he understand if you're not much of a fighter (not all people are), hes willing to carry you if you do end up fighting.

i feel like he is such a supportive person, through his own ways. he takes time in learning about the way you like doing things, but also what is the best corse of action for you. hes willing to lay down a plan or a schedule to make studying easier for you for example.

he provides feedback that is quite honest but in a caring and supportive manner. also when he demonstrates his swordmanship you cant help but look at how much of a skilled soldier he is, his techniques are extraordinary but also has a sense of ownership to it, he has taken time to disect and make some of the steps his quirks, so some things you cant keep up with. while percy is very flexible and agile with his sword, jason is forceful and dependable, his raw power mixed with his passion makes it easy for him to win any fight : its similar to a storm, furious and you dont realise that it has caught you inside of it until its too late.

he helps you with the mechanics if the movements of any weapon. bow&arrows, swords, daggers. he might not use a bow but he has memorizes the textbook-form and can correct you just fine. he radiates confidence even when he doesnt feel that way, which is both inspiring and truly sad that he feels like he has to act refined and perfect, almost like a "prince" in public.

he likes to read the same books that you read to try to understand you better but also to have something to talk about

he would make his bedroom / dorm as comfortable as possible for your reading purposes. like adding a bookshelf or getting blankets and tea/coffee that you like. he makes an effort to provide. that is his love language.

he is interested in his partner's ideas and interpretations of the books they read, and enjoys hearing your throughs on different topics.

he respects your qualtity and peaceful time and dont mind leaving you alone when you're reading. but is willing to sit there for hours quietly letting you do your thing. if you cuddle with him, hell put his glasses on and read above your shoulder, lean in and you can feel his hot breath against your neck.

he needs time after he breaks things off with piper, but eventually he heals and moves on. his heart is complete and whole again and makes a better effort to keep this relationship lasting, and protected.

[aroaceleovaldez]

Okay these tags on this post reminded me of a HoO/TOA thing that I complain about a lot but I don’t think i’ve ever elaborated on here:

[Image ID: Tags from @fr0zenpepsi​ reading - “#and jason fUCKING DIES before he even get fixed like #you dont know how excited i was when the diorama thing was mentioned like #make him artistic too!! make him be into architecture too! #and he plays lacrosse???? #like his character has sooo much potential yet hes just a boring white guy :< #thats prolly why his death is pretty lame #it meant a lot to the plot but like do we even know who we lost?? #more than half of the fandom doesnt even like him bc hes just so plain :/ #also hazel is a queen and i love her shes literally the best” /end ID.]

One of the big issues I take with both HoO and TOA is that literally every death in both series feels cheap because death has lost consequence. For the majority of HoO it’s at least somewhat still of a risk, but even things like Tartarus feel extremely lackluster when we actually encounter them - Tartarus especially after we saw how much it affected Nico, but then Percy and Annabeth’s plot armor kind of negates all of the threat and it feels like they don’t actually experience much more than their usual threats down there or that it has any lasting effect on them. And after Leo’s “death” we’re basically solidified into “Death has no consequence” because we just finished a series with at least SIX INSTANCES of major or minor protagonist-aligned characters notably directly cheating or miraculously avoiding death (Jason, Hazel, Gwen, Frank, Jason again, Leo), not including also miscellaneous minor antagonists. Which is aggravating because you can make a “Hey, these characters can’t die!” plot work, especially if that’s the root problem they’re trying to solve! It does work in TLH and SoN! And we’ve even seen it before in Battle of the Labyrinth when Percy fights his half-brother!

But HoO basically nullifies all consequence the characters face from MoA onwards and post-BoO “death” carries no weight, because by this point we have so many excuses to get around it or avoid it or come back from it that who cares! And this continues to be a thing post-TOA! Even just in the plot summary of Chalice Of The Gods we’re introduced to YET ANOTHER “Cheat death!” item! And I’d bet we’re gonna get one in TSATS too cause we’re almost guaranteed to see Damasen again, and the like one singular myth that exists referencing Damasen also specifically mentions an herb called “the flower of Zeus” that can revive things from the dead.

And it’s extra annoying because in TOA we keep getting character deaths shoved in our faces and told we should care about them, but either they’re characters we have little to no emotional connection to (such as, like, All Of Camp Jupiter in Tyrant’s Tomb when the camp is threatened and we’re told we should care, but we’ve barely seen the camp at all besides beginning of Son of Neptune and beginning of Mark of Athena, and the only living characters we get to actually see in Camp Jupiter from before TOA are Gwen, Dakota, Don the Faun, and our HoO protagonists.)

And Jason’s death is particularly annoying because a.) He’s essentially cheated death twice already [Piper bringing him back from either death or near-death when he accidentally witnessed Hera’s true form, and then his whole spear injury that was slowly killing him but was healed with [checks notes] the power of friendship], and b.) the scene DIRECTLY PARALLELS HIS FIGHT WITH MIDAS. Which, you know, he WON. VERY EASILY. And you can’t even argue “oh but this time Piper and Apollo were right there so he couldn’t have done the same thing!” because PIPER AND LEO WERE THERE WITH MIDAS. Heck, so was Lit! Who also survives and comes back in TOA! So not only is there no excuse for Jason to have not somehow miraculously avoided death (alongside every other TOA character, basically), but he SHOULDN’T HAVE DIED IN THE FIRST PLACE because THAT’S NOT A FIGHT HE SHOULD HAVE LOST! Him losing that fight is directly contrary to what we know about his character! And “he shouldn’t have lost that fight and died” doesn’t feel tragic here, it’s just aggravating! It’s just bad writing! And there’s no way around it because nobody cares about characters dying by that point in the series anyways because it doesn’t mean anything! We’ve had too much random death fodder in HoO (like the Hunters) directly alongside characters experiencing little to no consequence when they should from their experiences (Percy & Annabeth in Tartarus, literally every character nearly dying, etc.). The only characters we do see experience any kind of lasting consequences from near-death experiences are Hazel having blackouts in Son of Neptune (which are magically erased by Mark of Athena) and Nico being heavily implied to be permanently physically disabled after Tartarus (which is half-ignored when not plot relevant in TOA and completely ignored in the short story Un Natale Mezzosangue, which gives me reason to suspect it will also be ignored in TSATS). Not to mention Frank’s curse is also randomly erased in Tyrant’s Tomb, which is extra stupid because by following the logic of that scene his curse should have been lost back in Son of Neptune when he freed Thanatos, because he was using his curse for the same exact reasons with the same exact mindset. He literally did his character arc twice. Whatever.

HoO and TOA are just such a mess writing-wise of Rick trying to haphazardly incorporate as many myths as he can with zero attempts at cohesiveness that it doesn’t make any sense (I invite you all to read just the Team Statue chapters of BoO and take a moment to process how absolutely nonsensical it is) and he fails to consider the consequences of including certain myths, both in terms of how their aspects will impact the larger plot and also the historical context behind those myths and if how they’re being applied is offensive.

TL:DR: Jason’s death is stupid from literally every angle and HoO and TOA have a problem with literally any kind of narrative consequence.

[yonemurishiroku]

What do you think of Jason Grace x Alabaster Torrington, it could be a nice relationship

This is for both anon and @nicosavior456 since Nov 2023, bc I failed to get it tgt sooner.

In regard to Jason/Alabaster, I think it's an indeed interesting ship.

Hear me out. These two have surprisingly many crossings. The first that comes to my mind is that there is a chance Alabaster knows of Jason - as far-fetched as it sounds.

I'm talking about Alabaster's sword of Imperial gold. Imperial gold is the main weapon of Camp Jupiter. I've always wondered how Alabaster, a betraying Greek demigod of the Titan Army, managed to get his hands on such a weapon.

Which then leads to the second crossing - Jason toppling Kronos' throne on Mt. Othrys.

This poses as a perfect excuse for a scenario wherein Kronos (and in general the Titan Army) is aware of Camp Jupiter, and as one of his high-ranking followers, Alabaster should, too.

Taking both in account, I can practically make a headcanon about Alabaster stealing the Im. gold sword from Camp Jupiter's armory, how he and Jason could have encountered in a hypothetical infiltration into said armory, how they could have come across again in the advancing of the Mt. Othrys. i'm probably delusional, but you get what I mean.

tbh it would make quite a compelling story, you know, the praetor and the thief. sort of like a locked-up princess and the piper that comes across and tells her of the wonders beyond the bar. Ok maybe less romantic and more resentful. Alabaster as this enigma that, literally, sneaks into Jason's life and somehow turns it upside down. He comes back every night, magically bypassing Terminus' shield, curses Jupiter and his whole family, destroys everything Jason's been taught to believe in and then leaves in a flash of green light like a torch going out at the first sudden breeze. His visits always end up in fights, and yet Jason finds himself looking forward to them, as if looking for a breeze of fresh air - and things just devolve from there.

Look me in the eyes and tell me it doesn't sound exciting.

What about their dynamics, then?

An interesting thing is that, fundamentally, Alabaster is what Jason might become. It is the same way that Jason and Luke parallel each other? - I suppose.

Alabaster is a bitter one turned traitor. At that time, Jason should have been bitter if only he just allowed himself to feel. Jason is what Alabaster despites, pities, and hates to become the most - a loyal soldier to the mafia gods. Whereas Alabaster's existence clashes with everything Jason (at that time) is taught to believe in. He's against the gods and wants to bring down the Olympians instead of worshipping them.

He isn't what Jason would have considered one of them, but he has what Jason doesn't have and doesn't realize he needs yet - the courage to resist.

A spectacular turn of events would be that Alabaster manages to teach Jason the freedom to choose - the freedom they have been robbed of, the lack of which has been ensuring Jason as a useful soldier to Jupiter all this time. And what might come out of that? - perhaps, Percy would have an equal child of the Big Three as his enemy.

Also. It just occurs to me how funny that is that Alabaster... actually has a quite amicable relationship with his godly mother, whereas Jason is just estranged. But as it turns out, Al is the bitter one.

All in all, these two are such fun! 🤗 Hope you enjoy my delusions

[evanbuckwad]

tsats theories before i actually read it

this is solely for me to put all my thoughts in one place (kind of like a bingo board), feel free to interact with it though if you’d like

disclaimer: i've read the leaked preview and seen the video of rick showing the book off

i'm planning on:

trogs are definitely coming back, nico mentions their help because hades has forbidden him going to the voice in ToN and also there's this from the preview (x)

nico will at least have to acknowledge his solo tartarus trip which will make me yell and scream i hope he gets to share details of how fuckin horrible it was alone and without the mist ok (x)

general theories

maybe it's not Bob who wants out, maybe it's someone else (Michael Yew?) (x)

helm of darkness appearance (x)

parallels to HoH scene (i have read the first five so like i do know about the cupid reference but i also mean the other parts included in the reblog here x)

because we know we're getting information about will and nico getting together, could the marked flashback chapter(s?) have something to do with that?? (x)

Mark and that character they said deserved more attention (? I’m butchering the quote probably) — Michael Yew and Ethan Nakamura are my top candidates for that but much moreso expecting and hoping for Michael Yew

the idea of Nico telling the truth to will makes me excited and nervous…just had a thought about what if it’s like. the truth of how deep his self hatred goes/how scared he was/etc?? ouch (continuation of the HoH post)

so when I read the leaked preview I had this idea — Nico dreaming in shadows maybe is Styx, and then his mom would be his lifeline. Her calling to him would be her going to tell him to let go/move on/move forward and leave his past behind him...which would be something of equal/important value as Bob the Titan. Like Nico’s whole backstory/life/who he was. — and leaving Nico’s memories has definitely been tossed around at least, and I’d be curious if my first theory for this book was realized at all

i'm hoping for

acknowledgement of will losing siblings, other campers too but will siblings <3 Michael Yew love u (river acheron post)

Nico (and Will) and Small Bob (comic of this)

will not keeping his shit together (x)

partially prompted by Percy saying this in SOH I hope there’s a Melinoe feature especially to explore both Will and Nico’s ghosts

some sort of nod/s to will and Nico knowing of each other before they got together (like the Apollo cabin fighting with the Ares cabin in TLO, callbacks and their POVs on stuff like that)

Solangelo/Hades interaction (would also love any apollo feature and can't decide if TOA makes me think it's more or less likely to happen)

i'm excited by the idea of:

will getting injured and talking nico through how to save him (from this post)

similarly -- "character seeing their SO being fatally wounded and reacting" (see: "will's grip was very weak") (tagged this post as TSATS)

michael yew dream sequence!!!! (x) (as i tagged in that post...maybe what nico has to tell will the truth for?)

reverse octavian situation, where will says someone can't be saved type of thing (x)

learning more about will's tattoo and maybe the reason(s) for getting it (x)

"let me see Nico cross the border of life and death only to emerge then as the most stunning, gorgeous existence this universe has to offer...Or Will. The sun is a star anyway. I'm not picky about it." from this post

will being afraid of snakes (this post)

simply characters talking about being queer!!! would love piper to be in this <3

potentially bianca didn’t go for rebirth and was just hiding from Nico trying to bring her back (in TSON he says that’s what he was doing when he found Hazel)

i wonder if...

Rachel says the prophecy has repeated itself twelve times and how twelve is an important number for Olympus and the Doors of Death (mine)

georgina parentage confirmed at all? (x)

also seeing as we're going to learn about how they got together...if anyone wants to read either of my two fics about it lmk lol they’re on ao3

[malrie]

hate to parallel them but u kind of have to for any semblance of analysis within rick’s writing lol but it’s funny how inverted jasiper is to percabeth simply bc percy and piper are always raging w jealousy (percy even worse at times) and sure annabeth has been written w her moments too but the scales tip to the darksided brunettes lmfao….sorry I just wanted to call percy and piper darksided

[perceabeth]

i know this isn't really what you were talking about lskdkj but even just as a dynamic jercy pisses me off in canon bc rr clearly wanted them to be THE narrative foils of hoo but he didn't write in ANY nuance for them. like their dynamic is so built up as the leaders of their respective camps and opposite personalities and the different ways they go abt being Heroes but they r so boring and almost never interact... it's laughable comparing them to luke and percy in pjo who actually pulled off the Main Narrative Foils thing 😭

you're sooo right. i think it's because like riordan couldn't decide what to do with percy? he was meant to be a main character but also a side character. the lost trio was clearly set up to be The Focus Trio of the series-- they were all overpowered with little to no training the story began and ended with them and they were led by the Superman-eque Boy so u know it's meant to be about them

the reason luke and percy worked is because at some point luke saw himself in percy, just as percy saw a better future for himself in luke. they were similar in all ways but one- percy was guided predominantly by love and luke was guided predominantly by anger. the funny part about it is that luke did feel love at a very deep level, just as percy felt anger on a very deep level- it was what each character chose to act upon that made them different. that's a personality. that is what a narrative foil is meant to do: draw comparisons in character.

the percy/jason dynamic is so badly done because they aren't even friends. we don't actually see them as similar. sure, they fill in the same role at their respective camps: their lives may be symmetrical, but they themselves aren't that similar. are they both buried under responsibility? sure. but their core struggles are not even remotely the same. percy has already passed jason's current phase. he knows where he belongs, knows his role in the world, knows how to bear his burden. his problems come now from controlling the same flaws that he saw in LUKE, who remains a mirror to him despite being dead and gone. percy and jason aren't on the same journey!!

also this is a bit nit-picky, i know, but i find the whole 'jason is boring because he's a narrative foil to Interesting percy' SO so annoying lkjsdkfsjkf. first of all- i don't think characters who are straight-laced, morally inflexible, and tight lipped soldier types are boring. one dimensional, trope-filling characters are boring. jason didn't have to be a sarcastic quick witted impulsive lil shit to be fun! personally i don't think he's boring at all!! he's as full of wasted potential as any of the other hoo characters- they are all there to fill a role and be a trope. percy, annabeth, and nico are not exempt from it. a lot of what we know to be true about them are erased in hoo so that they will 'give space' to the new kids to fulfill their old role. it's so dumb and so offensive!!!

i'm sorry for talking so much, i'll wrap it up now but basically what i mean to say is: jason and percy don't work because jason is literally the lead while percy is reduced to comedic relief by the end. it's fine- not every stroy has to be centered around percy, but it makes drawing comparisons between them so cheap and tacky. they're not character foils. they're barely even in the same story. they're just two boys who kind of tolerate each other and pretend to be best friends with absolutely no explanation or chemsitry slkdjfklsdfj

[the-ghost-king]

About the cupid scene, Nico was forced to come out, but its also made very clear that Cupid is the bad guy. So is Aphrodite to an extent. They have a twisted and fundamental misunderstanding of love and how it works for mortals. I get that people could be mad about how Nico was forced to come out and putting him through more emotional trauma, but I also think its very realistic in showing how callous and cruel the gods understanding of love is.

I am reminded of the quote by Madeline Miller, "There is no law that gods must be fair..."

I also understand why the scene might be traumatic for other young LGBTQ+ readers, I've seen a lot of people talk about the fear of being outed in regards to them reading that scene as a kid. I completely respect their feelings on that, and I understand that as well. However, as someone who had been forcibly outed once before reading that scene, that scene really helped heal me. I don't think the Cupid scene is inherently homophobic, and I'm often bothered by the lack of nuance regarding around how it's handled.

I recognize it's a very emotional scene, and that people may have a hard time fully separating their emotions from that scene, but at the same time if there's a group of people saying "hey I understand why you disliked this scene but it was really helpful to me as a child because of the different experiences I had" maybe slow the breaks and hear what others also in the community have to say before determining if the scene is homophobic. You don't have to like the scene, and yeah maybe the scene did hurt you but that doesn't make it homophobic.

I want to specify on my word choice there a little closer, because of course outing someone is an act of homophobia, and the scene is homophobic in that sense. However often times the conversation about homophobia in this scene goes to "Rick was homophobic for writing this" where personally I would say this scene toes the line at being too far without ever crossing it. Some people may think this depiction crosses the line into "Rick was homophobic for writing this" which is fine, but just because something depicted homophobia and hurt you doesn't mean it was homophobic. Something doesn't have to out rightly be stated to be bad, in order to be read as bad*, and the Cupid scene does a wonderful job of depicting this.

I talk here about how Nico is shown what love is, and how love is treated by Nico, and how it affects his character. I think it's important to note that Nico's entire storyline can essentially be encompassed in an Orpheus-like or Odyssey-like tale. Nico's undergone this huge emotional and physical labor all in the name of having some form of unconditional love. I think that post is a really important read in the context of this one because I very carefully outline how love shapes Nico and how Nico shape and chooses his own definition of love, but I want to specifically dig into the Cupid scene on this post.

The big criticism often seen is "it's homophobic" which I covered above, and I want to clarify I'm not upset with or mad at or trying to tell anyone they can't dislike it or even say you can't say it's homophobic (my words on my one post are a bit off I'll admit) but the problem I have is when people believe they hold a moral high ground for thinking it's homophobic, or they remove all nuance from the discussion with "it's homophobic". Which is frustrating and annoying because it's a very complex scene, and it really changes Nico's arc and personality and it does help characterize him.

The big reason it shapes him so much is because of the other largest reason the scene is criticized, Cupid's behavior. What often fails to be recognized in those scenes is that Cupid is intentionally painted as the villain, this is very important to the scene.

In the context of this scene Nico makes an unspoken choice, a choice of "what is love to me?". I talk about how Nico claims his narrative in BoTL when he overcomes Minos, and he partially peaks that arc by convincing Gods to join the final battle of TLO. Following that arc however, Nico falls into his second arc, his crush on Percy was important in PJO, but not as important as it is in HoO.

By HoO Nico's entire character revolves around Percy, how to help Percy, how to aid Percy, etc. All of this has to do with Nico's crush on Percy, but also as an act of repayment because Nico hurt Percy- Nico lied to him about knowing him at New Rome in SoN, and he goes to Tartarus shortly after... This mirrors what Percy did after Hades tricked Nico... Percy choked Nico because he was upset with him, so Nico tried to win back Percy's affection by bathing him in the river.

The Cupid Scene is the resolution of Nico's arc, he is essentially given a choice- Cupid or Jason?

For this reason, we do see Nico recognize love for what it has been vs how it could be.

Cupid is there to represent what love is, to Nico love is brutal, and painful, and a lot of hard work... Nico has made himself utilitarian in love simply because it is the only way he can find any affection. Love to Nico is about flaying yourself for the benefit of others, to trample any and all parts of yourself simply to appease those you care for, because you want them to love you so much as you love them. The parallels I could draw between Nico and Orpheus, or Nico and Odysseus... I'd be here a long while...

In that scene Jason represents the alternative form of love which Nico chooses after his interaction with Cupid.

Jason says during the scene that he "preferred Piper's idea of love" which has to do with kindness and caring, etc, and then Jason becomes the embodiment of that idea during the scene- which showcases the alternative of what love can be, thus making Jason a personification of love in the context of that scene.

Jason looks to Nico, he doesn't ask for more, he simply looks to Nico with understanding and acknowledges him for who he is, and he does the exact opposite of what Nico expects:

Jason loves Nico where he is, without conditions, without forcing Nico to become something more. Jason didn’t force Nico to say more than what was necessary for him to understand, Jason looked at Nico and he called Nico brave.

Cupid is a more volatile form of love than Aphrodite, Cupid shoots arrows that makes people animals, that can make a god grow insane, but Aphrodite's form of love is about acceptance and humanity (think to how she picked Ares over Hephaestus even if it was perhaps "wrong")- both are about truth but one is about force and the other about acceptance.

When Nico walks out of there, he makes his choice- he is forced to come out yes, Cupid is wrong for doing this, but Jason again stays a figure of love in Nico's life. Jason basically says, "Good job, I know that was hard, thank you for sharing and let me know if you need anything, people will care about you and understand you," again and again and again to Nico, he doesn't tell Nico he has to come out, and he agrees to keep it between them for now. Jason is love as acceptance, Jason is the first person who unconditionally loves Nico, and that's the choice.

Will Nico accept unconditional love? If the answer is no, then Cupid wins and Nico is denying himself. If the answer is yes, then Jason and Nico win, and Nico no longer needs to make himself utilitarian in love in order to be loved.

The choice is made with Reyna and Hedge, most specifically Reyna.

When he accidentally comes out to them, and they accept him without making a big deal of it, without show, just that acknowledgement and "thank you for sharing" and Nico accepts their words and friendship still- Nico made his choice then to accept the love he was being freely given.

“He carried so much sadness and loneliness, so much heartache. Yet he put his mission first. He persevered. Reyna respected that. She understood that. She'd never been a touchy-feely person, but she had the strangest desire to drape her cloak over Nico's shoulders and tuck him in. She mentally chided herself. He was a comrade, not her little brother. He wouldn't appreciate the gesture.”

This is where we see the slow and steady, and healthy, end to Nico's arc in regards to love really grow into itself, and he begins to heal. He no longer sees such an intense need to make himself utilitarian for love, and he begins to heal from his internalized homophobia too.

(Internalized homophobia discussions with Nico also bother me too often times, people too often assume you can't date while struggling with internalized homophobia or at least very heavy handedly imply that which is just not true... You may have some issues in your relationship, but you can work through the internalized homophobia while building a new relationship and be just fine. Also to assume someone has an unhealthy relationship because of internalized homophobia is weird and lowkey reinforces the idea that "broken" people don't need love, but also does a huge disservice to so many LGBTQ+ people who are happily married/themselves but still struggle with these feelings, and to see a healthy relationship depiction despite someone in that relationship struggling with internalized homophobia is fine and good actually. As long as the individual can recognize what they're dealing with, and work through it in a healthy and constructive manner, then there's nothing wrong there...)

When I started this post to be honest I thought I would have a lot more to say, it's a scene that touched and changed me so deeply as a person, and beyond that in a more objective experience it completely changes Nico's character, by turning his arc around and beginning his healing process. To be honest, there probably is more to be said on it, I just haven't found the words yet... I know parts of this post are clunky and in a year I'm going to read this and see all the places it could be better but for now I'm content with it.

Whether or not someone considers the scene homophobic is a subjective experience, but I think this is a very well written scene purely for the characterization and symbolism, intentional or otherwise. I don't really care that much to debate if it's truly a homophobic scene or not, I can see both why people say it is and why people say it isn't and that can be culminated into "people have different needs" and "minorities aren't a monolith". Personally my much larger complaint is the complete lack of nuance and insight scenes like this are handled with, not the matter of personal opinion an individual reaches on the scene.

*the post uses the word "adult audience" and yes, fair point, children should not be able to decipher symbolism to the extent adults can. But older children and young teens, which the RRverse series are sold for, is when critical thinking skills and media analysis do begin to become parts of classroom curriculum. The scene does an excellent job of not outright stating Cupid is evil, but of depicting that in a very clear cut way.

[zazzander]

Jason Grace and Octavian, pt 5 / final

Healing the Gods

Of course, there is another parallel between Jason and Octavian – the rank of Pontifex Maximus. While Reyna is criticising Octavian for taking on the role, Jason is being proclaimed it. Interestingly, once again Octavian looks to gain power and is shamed by the characters around him; once again, Jason is handed this power and it is celebrated as something noble.

First, Octavian

Ignoring the murder part of this plan, one of Octavian's goals in Blood of Olympus (and perhaps long before) was to heal the gods. To fix the break that causes them to be divided, to fight themselves. He wants to restore them to full power. But I've spoken about Octavian's intent at length before. So this post is mostly being to talk about Jason.

And then, Jason

Going all the way back to the Lost Hero, we have Jason’s comment:

“So you believe those gods still exist?”

“Yes,” Jason said immediately. “I mean, I don’t think we should worship them or sacrifice chickens to them or anything, but they’re still around because they’re a powerful part of civilisation. They move from country to country as the centre of power shifted – like they moved from Ancient Greece to Rome.” [Lost Hero 90]

Not example the words of someone who would later become a priest. But Jason changes during Blood of Olympus.

“I can change that,” he promised. “I will personally arrange a shrine for you on Temple Hill in New Rome. Your first ever Roman shrine! I’ll raise one at Camp Half-Blood as well, right on the shore of Long Island Sound. Imagine, being honoured–”

“And feared.”

“– and feared by both Greeks and Romans. You’ll be famous!”

He offers this in the heat of battle, as a means of turning Kymopoleia, the minor goddess, back to their side against the giants.

After the fight, Jason says,

“I will,” Jason said. “When we win this war, I’m going to make sure all the gods get recognised.” […] “Which is why I’m going to finish the job.” Jason didn’t know where these words were coming from, but the idea fight absolutely right. “I’ll make sure none of the gods are forgotten at either camp. Maybe they’ll get temple, or cabins, or at least shrines.”

As they part, Kym says,

“But, if you win, remember your promise, Pontifex.”

Jason took a moment to process her words. “I’m not a priest.”

“No?” Kym’s white eyes gleamed.

And Jason offers his own explanation to Percy,

“Roman used to have a Pontifex Maximus, who oversaw all the proper sacrifices and whatnot, to make sure none of the gods got made. Which I offered to do… I guess it does sound like a pontifex’s job.”

Jason is setting himself up as Octavian’s successor, even if he doesn't fully realise taht.

Octavian was the sole priest of the, seemingly for a long time. And Jason certainly hadn’t considered helping him in the past.

But as Octavian’s death approaches, Jason is prepping to take over.

Again, it’s interesting how their goals align; and so too does their path.

“I heard. The Senate plans to elect you Pontifex Maximus.”

Jason shrugged. “I don’t care about the title so much. I do care about making sure the gods are remembered.”

One thing this entire narrative has been insistent upon is that trying to gain power is wrong. But being handed it on a golden platter? Morally correct. Ambition is wrong, apparently.

But its such a luxury for Jason to be like "yeah I don't care" because anyone else would struggle to fulfil his promises without that title. Hell, even with that title, they might struggle. Octavian certainly did. The moment Reyna returned all bets were off. Everyone switched allegiance.

Jason Drops the Façade

The whole of Long Island Sound spread out to the horizon. They were so far up, and at such an angle that nobody below could possibly see them. The patrol harpies never flew this high. […] “But aren’t you going to get in trouble?”

“Who cares?” Jason asked.

Piper laughed quietly. “Who are you?”

He turned, his glasses place bronze in starlight. “Jason Grace. Please to meet you.”

As we see Jason recreate the memory of their first kiss. In a poetic way, Jason has become the person Hera knew he could be. For all the flack she gets, Hera really did know him best.

Ironically, Jason is now the person that could have been good friends with Octavian. Someone ready to break some rules. Someone who realises the nature of the gods and wants to fix things. Someone who wishes to make Rome a little more Greek.

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5

[punkeropercyjackson]

Egg Percy Jackson evidence masterpost

Considers traditional masculinity a burden,weird,confusing and gross(see her calling Ares ugly + Finding Apollo extremely annoying for acting like a stereotypical guy)but forces it onto herself because she's desperate to fit in and be accepted

Thinks women are better than men

Almost all her friends in the og series were girls(Annabeth,Silena,Clarisse,Thalia,Zoe,Bianca and Rachel vs just Grover,Nico and Beckendorf)

The first gay male character in the series stopped crushing on her because he realized she's not the ideal man he thought she was

Her relathionship with him is also very eldest sister/middle brother-esque

Her most common clothing item is hoodies(dysphoria)

Almost all the gods who treat her badly are men while almost all her positive relathionships with them are with the goddesses,including Artemis who is very famous for disliking men and protecting young girls

Persephone,who's most significant and solid myth is about men's violence against women(Hymn to Demeter),canonically likes her for being 'different' from other 'male' halfbloods

Generally relates to other female characters more than she does male ones

Best friends to lovers to exes turned even closer best friends is a very common experience for irl trans women with afab wlw and this is her canon dynamic with Rachel

Was jealous of Thalia because wanted to be like her,Thalia being a girl who defies and spits in the face of society's expectations of women but is still very proudly a girl and gets pissed when people try to erase that

Frequently describes women she finds pretty in an enchanted and awed way,which combined with all the prev points is most definitely gender envy

The Titan's Curse,the book where she enters teenagehood,had a huge focus on how she's 'not like other men' by the Hunters,who in the og myths were pretty much a metaphor for 'lesbians',if not outright interested in women and rejecting men as romantic options

Only ship them platonically but Annabeth never really shows attraction to characters she thinks are men other than her and Luke and she straight up said she never actually loved the latter romantically and always saw him as an older brother and was just confused because of how young she was so this makes both her being a lesbian and Percy being a trans woman click perfectly together

Specifically them being butch4femme since Annabeth is a tomboy who hates girlyness for herself and Percy as per stated before dosen't wanna be masc.Also,daughter of the king of Atlantis?'Her hair was curly,like a princess'?Gender envy strikes again!!

She acts like a Mom Friend very often,especially to younger characters,and i'm allowed to say that because i'm afab and a Mom Friend myself

Rick has commented on her sexuality but never her gender so it's not like it's been debunked

A joke one but Blackjack was called a mare in SOM yet a stallion from TTC onward so trans horse boy and his trans horse girl owner

Luke's relathionship with her heavily parallels his to Annabeth,Thalia and Silena so it's not a stretch to say this is unintentional subtext of her being a girl like them and him picking up on her vulnerability like he did them(Not in a 'chilvarious' way btw)

Jason and her remind me of many common main m/f romance tropes-The 'hotheaded girl x levelheaded boy' classic,tall girlfriend and slighter taller boyfriend,contrasting in a complimentary way powers,iirc it being obvious to everyone they instantly liked eachother(feel free to correct me and i'll remove this),Team Parents to the babies of the cast and 'Sweet Sixteen' joke since Percy met her first boyfriend at that age.Worth noting that this would make Percy Jason's best friend who's a girl and that he broke with Piper because their feelings for eachother were shallow and their dating dynamic was too by extent

Similarly,Percy and Annabeth fall under the 'dark haired female protagonist and her tomboy blonde best friend' trope that was so popular 2000s/2010s

More so motifs i think work well than evidence but sea related things are usually associated with femininity-Calling ships 'she',mermaids,pearl jewelry,the moon controlling the tides,the term 'Beach Bunny',etc

Her random reinforments of her 'manhood' are very inconsistent with the rest of her personality and we're given no indication Sally raised her on gender roles so it's less Percy being Percy and more Rick being a cis man

Rick also agreed with the headcanon she loves Led Zepplin so i googled to find out if they were lgbt and they weren't but what i learned was enough to let me know they're a hit with lgbt people for a reason

Again,just my own take,but i feel her being pastel and kidcore is more fitting than any other interests and style for her in addition to her being canonically punk and they're both in-character for her since she's got a positive opinion on girly girls and the second one is an excellent coping mechanism for constant childhood trauma

She's at most in-character,well-written and realistic when she just lets herself be instead of trying to be what everyone wants her to and to be brutally honest,this includes the fandom.She's a femme trans woman and i'm right

[timelesslords]

So Under Freezing Stars is finally done 😭I’m incredibly sad it's over but also so happy with the finished product and with the response it's gotten over the past few months <3 

I thought it might be fun to compile some little details about the fic- easter eggs and callbacks to the original books, little thematic details and symbols I included, chapter parallels, stuff like that! Everything is below the cut to avoid spoilers, but hopefully y’all find it fun and it’s an interesting way to top everything off :’) 

Symbolism/Theme

the first time Annabeth drinks nectar, she can’t put a taste to it. This is because she’s in a transitional period with her identity, where she hasn’t quite solidified a sense of home. When she wakes up after being given nectar for the second time, her mouth tastes like apples because her and Perseus had split one together back on the ship. It’s the first food they shared together after she starts associating him with the concept of home, so the nectar takes on that taste. also apples are a sacred fruit of aphrodite so, ya know ;) 

Water plays a big role thematically. There’s the obvious connection to Perseus (whenever Annabeth is looking out into the sea during an unrelated conversation, it’s sort of supposed to indicate that he’s on her mind) but also the more traditional symbolic meanings of water— washing someone/something clean, renewal, rebirth, etc. all of which are themes of the book anyways so it worked out!! Chapters to watch for water symbolism would be 18 and 32 in particular but really anytime there’s an emphasis on the sea

the quote I chose for the epigraph (”Understand this if you understand nothing: it is a powerful thing to be seen”) is from Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi, one of my favorite books! In the context of Freshwater, this quote is when the main character (spoiler) meets someone from their culture who helps them realize they’re a god. It just felt like a particularly perfect way to start off the story, given how many parallels there are to that moment in Freshwater to the entirety UFS. Even without context it frames the story of one of self discovery, but particularly self discovery in tandem with another, which is exactly what I think UFS is about at its core. Freshwater is an incredible book that I owe so much to in terms of inspiring UFS thematically and I def recommend it, though please look up TWs for it beforehand bc it does contain a lot of triggering content.

another more obvious meta thing, the chapter titles switch from Latin to Greek after Annabeth realizes she’s Greek and not Roman 

Chapter Parallels 

 ch20 is called divinity because Annabeth views the sex as akin to a religious awakening— sleeping with her lover is both an act of worship and a revelatory experience wherein she comes to terms with the godly side of her identity. But chapter 33 is called mortal because the thing that makes them special together isn’t necessarily their parentage or their godliness, it’s their humanity. Gods can’t bare their souls to one another because they don’t have one. But mortals— vulnerable and breakable as they are— have that advantage, and when they sleep together the second time Annabeth is fully cognizant and appreciative of that fact.  

The drooling in sleep thing is obviously a callback to the OG books (it’s such an iconic first line I had to include it somehow lol) but it also has a thematic parallel (one that Annabeth actually points out within the narrative). That was one of the first moments she recognized he was human and not some unattainable figure, so it comes back to her later in ch33 when she's thinking about their mortality

In ch14, Piper offers to fix Annabeth’s hair as a peace offering. In ch33, Perseus untangles her hair for her because the idea of doing it herself is overwhelming for her. I just really like the idea of caring for someone else’s hair being an act of love towards that person :’) 

Easter Eggs/OG Book Callbacks

Blackjack asking for fried dough at the end of chapter 4 is a reference to him always asking for donuts in the original books (yes I did google “did they have donuts in ancient rome” for that lol)

The way they fight the hellhound in ch6 (Percy distracting in the front and Annabeth sneaking around the back) is their go-to fighting strategy in the books, which Percy comments on in BOTL

Obviously Jason passing out every 30 seconds is a reference to Jason getting knocked out like 3x a book in HOO (#brason)

Fai turning into a lizard in the Athens chapter is a callback to Frank the Iguana from MOA

the masthead of the ship being a dragon is meant to be reminiscent of Festus  

Other stuff!

Chapter 16 is named calm and chapter 17 is named storm bc 16 is the calm before the (literal) storm

Annabeth saying “is your head full of kelp” to percy in ch13 is the closest I could feasibly get to her calling him seaweed brain lol. I think in chapter 15 she also comments to herself that she feels like his brain is made of seaweed sometimes <3  

When Annabeth decides to let Jason and Piper wake up on their own instead of waking them up herself in ch32, it’s sort of a callback to previous comments she’s made about Jason not being a morning person. She’s still scared that he’ll be mad at her, and she doesn’t want to exacerbate that by waking him up early because she knows he’s in a worse mood in the morning. 

In the final conversation with Jason, Annabeth says “you’re always too hard on yourself” which is kind of a play on her last words to Luke in the original books (“you always pushed yourself too hard”). I don’t know why but I’ve always really liked that line, it feels very Annabeth, so I wanted to include it somehow. Jason isn’t dying but she does love him like a brother so that felt like a good place for it to go. 

something to generally look out for is how reliable or not reliable Annabeth’s narration is. She’s not like a Holden Caufield where she straight up lies to the audience, but her thoughts and observations are not always the most true version of what’s going on. This is probably most obvious in the Luke conflict (particularly chapters 21 and 23) but also when she has to read other people’s emotions and make assumptions about what they’re thinking based on that. A lot of times she’s straight up wrong and just doesn’t realize it (this is particularly relevant in ch14 lol)

another general thing to look at is chapter titles, particularly in the second half of the book. A lot of times the title of the chapter is one of the main themes of the story and that chapter is either an important plot point for that theme or a resolution of it! 

That’s all I can think of right now! I might update this later if I remember more but this is already stupidly long lol. I would apologize for turning my fic into an English assignment but if you made it this far you probably thought it was at least a little interesting, so 😂 

thank you guys again for reading <3 love you all!

[bright-eyes-strawberry-lies]

Rating PJO Ships

I already made the PJO shipping jar meme (not linking because tumblr hates links) but thought I’d write it out anyway. 

***

Solangelo - (5/10) Will is Nico’s unnecessary rebound because Rick couldn’t let someone walk around with a crush on Percy without pairing them off with someone or making them live a life of chastity. The fandom went wild with this ship despite all of their “development” being off the page. Would be better if the building attraction and relationship was given actual page time to develop instead of being rushed. 

Frazel - (10/10) My only complaint is that we didn’t get more of them being the awesome couple they are. The way they went from friends to lovers is perfect. Looks cute but can kick your ass. Very supportive of each other. I am here for biracial power couples. 

Lukercy - (10/10) There are literally dozens of parallels between them and Rick wrote them as soulmates. I love that Luke trained Percy so hard that Percy’s never lost a sword fight except to Luke himself and still hears Luke’s voice in his head guiding him through fights. The subtle ways that Luke constantly gave Percy (and Co) chances to escape from Kronos’ grasp even when he still believed in Kronos was golden. Luke was the only person who was kind to Percy at Camp Half-Blood and trusted Percy to help other demigods when he died? My heart. How Percy now shares all of Luke’s views on the Olympians? Bittersweet irony. I wish that Luke hadn’t died because I’m tired of writing resurrection AUs. 

Percico - (10/10) The most powerful power couple. Nico’s youthful hero worship giving way to love? Sign me up. Percy spending winter looking for Nico to keep him safe and trying to reassure him that he has a place at Camp Half-Blood? Give me more. Making mistakes and forgiving each other for them and their relationship strengthening because of it? Gods, yes. Going to Italy to go gift shopping and flirting? Thank you for this blessing, Rick. If only they had been endgame. 

Thaliabeth - (7/10) Thalia is the only person that Annabeth respects and Thalia has extremely protective feelings toward Annabeth. They would be the nightmare power couple. Murder wives who slay anyone who stands in their way of power and glory. Neither of them would take shit from the other. And honestly, I’m here for it. 

Perachel - (10/10) Mutual respect and open communication are extremely sexy in relationships. Rachel being Percy’s mortal tie and his chance at a normal life; Percy being the one to help Rachel with her powers and clear sight? Please yes. They were really cute and sweet and had so much chemistry. It would have been great if Rick acknowledged that the Oracle isn’t a lifelong job and that Rachel can still date and have sex as long as it isn’t vaginal penetration. 

Percabeth - (0/10) Annabeth hits, pinches, pokes, kicks, ribs, and punches Percy too often for my tastes. She’s got a superiority complex and makes herself feel better by calling him stupid, crazy, and insane. Constantly threatens violence. Annabeth is possessive, jealous, refuses to communicate, and doesn’t respect Percy or allow him to have autonomy. She constantly wants to control what he says and does or doesn’t say/do. She victim blames him multiple times for incidents that were beyond Percy’s control. Percy is scared of her, refuses to argue so that he doesn’t set her off, and thinks Annabeth is going to hurt him every time she so much as looks at him. Percy deserves better. 

Jiper - (5/10) It would have been cool to see them work past the lies and false memories to make a real romantic relationship but I don’t really have a horse in that race. They’re alright. Not bad, not the best. 

Pipeo - (7/10) If the theory that all of Piper’s memories of Jason were actually memories of Leo is true, then I’m here for this. The fact that they were friends before they even knew they were demigods was fantastic. Give me that friends to lovers dynamic and the chaotic trouble they would get into together. They would be unstoppable. 

Caleo - (5/10) Pairing Calypso up with a man boy instead of a man man was a strange choice but Rick likes pairing up teenagers with beings that are over a thousand years old. It’s terribly romantic that Leo kept his promise and came back for Calypso. I like that they decided to leave the demigod life behind to do their own thing. They’ve had enough of the gods! Let them figure themselves out and enjoy each other and life. 

Connabeth - (4/10) The idea is cute if you don’t think about it at all. I think Connor would stand up to Annabeth but she’s been known to wear down three thousand year old centaurs [Chiron] so that he’ll do what she wants...so I’m not sure that Connor actually stands a chance of holding his own against Annabeth. 

Lukethan - (4/10) It would be really cute but they’ve never even spoken to each other in canon. Ethan spoke with Kronos. 

Thaluke - (2/10) Thalia doesn’t like Luke. She withheld a lot of [trivial] information from Luke just because she could and didn’t tell him important info either. She almost definitely knew that Luke would do whatever she wanted him to because she’s got a Look that makes him melt. Thalia is incredibly eager to kill Luke and eventually does. Luke is too dependent and blinded by how much he wanted someone to love him. They’ve got an unhealthy dynamic and I don’t see either of them changing to become better people together. 

Valdangelo - (6/10) They’re both small and cute. That’s all I’ve got. There’s no reason not to ship them. Oh, and Leo warming up a cold Nico with his fire powers is so sweet that I’ve got cavities just thinking about it. 

Jasico - (9/10) Rick was really writing them with romantic troupes during Mark of Athena and House of Hades. When they were paired off with other people, I was actually really surprised. The way that Jason supports Nico’s queerness and the way that Nico can teach Jason that he doesn’t have to live up to stereotypes and other people's expectations...that would have been really good to read. The way that Jason’s death affected Nico really tugged at my heartstrings. I like to think that Nico visits Jason in the Underworld. 

Thalianca - (6/10) The potential of Thalia and Bianca could have been so good and also good for comedy. Imagine Thalia - who missed the past five years - trying to catch Bianca up on the 21st century and being behind on the times. Both of them getting caught up together? Yes. Training together, friendly games and competitions. Midnight rendezvous at Camp Half-Blood. Bianca slowly showing Thalia that not all Hunters of Artemis are bad. Girls supporting each other and growing as people because of their relationship. This is what we could have had. 

[seavoice]

hello!! what are your opinions about piper (from rrverse)

Short answer: I love her! Soooo much!

Longer answer: I really love the idea of Piper, but I think Riordan didn’t really utilise her potential as a character to its fullest? This could be said about most of the HoO characters, but I feel this especially with Piper (maybe because I love her a lot so I think about her a lot lmao) who has an extremely interesting arc and backstory, but was handled really poorly and like, lacklustre-ly at times. Also, Riordan definitely should have done proper research about her heritage beforehand, or had a sensitivity writer or two look through his books. I don’t particularly like the term “irresponsible representation” personally, because lately it’s really morphed into “why doesn’t the author mould this character EXACTLY based on my individual experience”, but in Piper’s case I think that criticism fits. Just...more care could have gone in, you know?

I think her relationship with her Dad was the first thing that really captured my interest about her, you know? She was definitely the character I cared most about in TLH the first time around haha. Leo was too popular at that time for edgy ten year old me, and I inexplicably hated Jason. I think that time I just found her and her powers cool (and Katoptris!) but in hindsight, she parallels Percy circa TLT to a point and he was my favourite character. So. Clearly I have a type! In TLT, when Annabeth comments about how she was impressed that Percy took on the quest to save his mother, and he’s like duh wouldn’t you for your dad and she’s like pfft he wishes? The concept of there being some sort of duty towards your parents is very fascinating to me, because some of them...just don’t deserve that! That’s a pretty central theme in PJO I feel, except it naturally investigates about the GODLY parents, and is given the name faith instead. 

But Piper really grapples with that! She has a complicated relationship with Tristan; she loves Tristan. She feels neglected by Tristan. (She IS neglected by Tristan). She knows he loves her. She doesn’t know if she’s always his first priority. She wants to share in their heritage with him. She can’t share her mother’s with him, not really. Her lying to her friends about the quest and her true desires were SO good as a choice, I love problems and lies. She doesn’t get to have the same easiness that Percy-Sally have, but she still chooses to go on that same journey. And in the end, she can’t even TELL Tristan about any of it. 

The way Tristan and Piper are consistently fucked up by the gods right through TOA really drives home why in the end, she is the one who leaves the mythological world as far behind as she can. I think it wouldn’t be a stretch to say that more than anyone else in the books, she’s the one who’s lines are most jagged in this world. It makes a lot of sense that she left! In one of the HoO books she is thinking about her mother being so old (or just the gods in general idr) and she goes no wonder they’re crazy, after going through so much change, I feel insane after the mere months of change I have had. I think that’s an intriguing character note. She feels she doesn’t do well with change, but she is forced to change and uproot so many times throughout the books. 

I’ve always thought the Lost Trio were the most cohesive trio in the books, they just all FIT. It’s very funny how I enjoy every other combination/pairing in the trio more than Jasper as a romantic couple but that’s neither here nor there lmao. Leo and Piper are the FUNNEST pair of best friends, I find their friendship the sweetest. I hope we get to see them in contact with each other in whichever new content we get. They’re the most vital connection to each other. 

But I still ALSO like Jason and Piper’s complicated dumbass equation. Very teenage-y. Very tragic. I think no matter the type of relationship they had, no matter what she may go on to discover about herself, Piper will always consider it a formative and important part of her life, and remember it, even if with some pain, also with a lot of fondness.

Piper’s someone who has a lot of potential  for interesting dynamics with all other characters too. I think the idea of her having puppy crush on Annabeth is quite cute, and even regardless of it, I like what we get in the books. Wish we could get more of them. Same with Hazel and Frank. CRIMINAL that we just breezed through the Frank and Piper bonding quest in BOO. Reyna and Piper...again lost potential. When did they get close-adjacent and why couldn’t we see it? But her calling Percy unimpressive was top ten most based decisions imo 🔥 always maintain that.

Also I think exploring her relationship with Aphrodite and Drew and the rest of the cabin and even the complicated memory of Silena is VERY INTERESTING. But that’s purely non-canon, so I’m not going to talk about that now. It’s all in my head.

I remember Alex @/narcissuscore made this Piper being queercoded post (I think?? It’s been a while correct me if I’m wrong Alex😭) just after the Burning Maze came out and it truly was A Moment when TON came out and we realised Piper was working on exploring herself and her sexuality outside of godly expectations and imposed heteronormativity. I think that was a really good writing choice, and shame that it came so late we couldn’t explore it further, but I personally have great love for that arc she is going through. It’s very sweet, even if I admit I have not thought about Shel in my life ever. But what it means to Piper is very nice. 

Okay, anon you asked for none of this, I just rambled on and on about Piper. 😭😂sorry about that, but I do love her even with the flawed writing, and it was nice to write it out and see what resonated most in her story for me. It’s been a while since I’ve actually thought about these characters! 

TLDR I love her lots and lots

[perseusjackson-jasongrace]

22 from the July Prompts list for jason/percy/Annabeth/Piper?

hello my sweet thank you for the prompt. you know how much i love these four i can't believe it's taken me so long to see all the wondrous possibilities of them! anyway please enjoy

what are we if not okay

prompt: pink skies// jercipabeth// 435 words

Piper had been painting since her small uncoordinated chubby fingers could hold a brush. She had been painting since before she could talk. But there are some moments in life she knows no matter how talented or dedicated she is she would never be able to capture under her brushstroke, on the rough canvas. This here, with warm sun on her face and the soft purr of the car engine and the sweet laughter of her favourite people, is one of those moments.

Jason’s fingers are curled around Percy’s thigh, other hand wrapped solidly around the steering wheel. She can see the bright sparkle of joy in his big blue eyes from the rearview mirror. Percy is looking out the window, laughing at the cows they pass, naming them every variation of “Maybelle” he can possibly think of. And next to her, leaning on her shoulder, grey eyes sleepy but crinkled with amusement, is Annabeth. Piper’s own fingers are threading through their girlfriend’s blonde hair.

Some soft, smooth voice is playing low around them but they’re all so wrapped up in each other it’s hard to imagine even an earthquake would disrupt their little bubble. The sky, as they coast down the highway, turns the shades of an Aivazovsky painting: gentle blues, and soft pinks, and burning orange, and yellow, happiness yellow. She can't believe this is real. She feels as if she’s living a life far away from herself, as if in some parallel universe where everything is okay. Not perfect or terrifying or outrageous or too good. Everything is okay. It is more than she ever dared to hope and better than she ever dared to dream. She knows it's real and somehow it feels more fake because of it.

“Pipes,” Percy’s musical voice drifts over her. She can hear the smile in his voice. “You need to give me another name before Jason crashes the car from laughing so hard.”

“I would never put you guys in danger.” Jason rolls his eyes, but the reverberance in his tone makes it clear he’s deadly serious.

They know it. They know he’d fling himself into the mouth of their enemy before letting any of them get hurt. He knows they’d all do the same. It’s why they work. Why they understand. Why they’re here, driving down a highway, under a pink sky, laughing freely. It’s why they’re okay.

“How about Gertrude?” Piper smiles.

“That’s my great grandmother’s name,” Annabeth mumbles sleepily.

“Then you better start us off,” Percy giggles.

happy happy happy happy happy. real real real real real. okay. they’re so very okay.