#demigods living to be adults is very important to me actually

[bayetea]

jackson!

[thecurioustale]

This is an interesting premise. It's one of those immediately-compelling ideas that also isn't immediately obvious in how I might apply it to my own experience with writing. Upon a moment's further contemplation, it still doesn't seem like it fits me. Nor does it need to, of course, but the thing about a compelling premise is that you wanna run with it, right? So let's try it...

I was mentioning recently, in a conversation with a friend, how I sort of have these three central characters of mine, Silence Terlais and Afiach Bard and Cherry Ilyapa, each with their own respective story they are at the center of: After The Hero, Mate of Song, and the Galaxy Federal Inaugural Novel (which has a title but I haven't announced it). It's not a perfect category container, because Mate of Song is just an Interlude of After The Hero, and is fundamentally a much smaller story than the Galaxy Federal Inaugural Novel, which itself is fundamentally a much smaller story than After The Hero. But that's all at the literal level. At the meta level, these are sort of the three big stories that I have had in my adult life, regardless of their size and importance relatively to each other. These are my three central stories, and those characters I mentioned are my three central characters.

Each of those characters, and their stories, represent where I was at at different stages in my life.

After The Hero is the glorious youthful declaration of arrival into the world, the ambitious tale of world-change and personal fulfillment, and is a story that was born of a much happier era and a much happier and more ambitious and illustrious Josh.

Mate of Song represented my transition into middle age and actually occurred just before I began to consciously notice those associated things for myself. It is a story of quietude, wandering, and no ambition but to endure and be true to oneself. Afiach is not a demigod like Silence or a famous star-captain like Cherry; she is a travelling bard whom nobody knows about, and her only power is her power of song, and her ability to be inspired to sing as she goes through life and the world. Hers is a quiet story, a gentle story. In my personal life, I had experienced some serious setbacks, but had managed to land on my feet in new circumstances, an exile from my beloved West Coast yet somehow deposited in the most beautiful place I have ever lived, the most magical and far-removed from the mundane qualities of our world. It was an time of intimate solitude, and a first reckoning with the fact that youthful ambitions were cracking and turning to dust. I often tell people that Mate of Song, despite being this quaint little pocket story fitted inside my much larger magnum opus, is my favorite story, because, from this side of those years, I look back on that time as the best time, even if the Josh from the other side of those years would not have.

And the Galaxy Federal Inaugural Novel, though its first stirrings began years earlier, is quintessentially a product of the Joshalonian Troubles, those unhappy and damaging years, and their aftermath, which ruined my life and left of me a wreck of a person. Into poor Cherry I poured all my suffering, all my loss, all my sorrow. Hers is a life filled with numbness, sadness, suffering, and anguish. The very notion of glorious ambitions is a cruel joke, and no amount of material success can make her happy—for material success never even mattered in the first place, nor did anything else, for that matter, because we have to be who we are.

But none of these stories are any easier or harder to write—any more diurnal or nocturnal for me—than the others. Perhaps the closest one to excepting this is Mate of Song, just because of how distinctly different it is. To keep up with the metaphor, it was the transitory twilight between day and night. It was from an era of transition in my life, between two much larger and longer-lasting paradigms. And also because the legend of Mate of Song has built up in my mind so much, and become so inextricably intertwined with my own years on the Mountain, that I feel very much like an outsider when I attempt to work on it nowadays. (And I don't do this often, because the Galaxy Federal Inaugural Novel and ATH Chapter 1 are of a higher-priority and receive most of my writing time.)

It is the strange burden of this latter-day Josh to be the custodian of all three stories. I have to be able to put myself into all the hours of the day: I must command the brightest rays of sunshine, and illustrate the proudest and happiest of youthful dreams, and, indeed, capture those orange moments of twilight that encapsulate Mate of Song. I am not suited to it at all, and yet those stories were both so important to me, in their day, that their likeness and essence is seared into me forever, even so that this latter-day Josh cannot be a stranger to their colors and tones.

In truth, all three of my stories are filled with great happiness and unhappiness alike, great suffering and deliverance alike, great bleakness and optimism alike. Silence is sad; Silence is happy. Afiach is sad; Afiach is happy. Cherry is sad; Cherry is...well...er...Cherry has an incredibly fat wife. That's like the next best thing to happy.

I can't speak to what Rob meant when he told of "painful to write." For myself, it's not any extra amount of painful to write Cherry's story of suffering; nor, for that matter, is it any extra amount of painful to go back into Silence's sunniest years and my own zealous and optimistic past and write that story true to the Josh I used to be.

The most painful things to write, for me, are the scenes for which I have the least passion, the scenes that "need doing" but which I have no especial excitement for, and their painfulness is perhaps best described as a mixture of dread and annoyance. But even these, once I start writing them, usually tend to grow on me, so most of the pain they cause comes in advance, or early on.

I guess what I'm really saying is that none of my writing is truly painful to me. On the contrary, I have to do it. I love doing it, if not in the lovey-dovey sense then in the existential "I am fulfilling my purpose on this Earth" sense and the "I am being true to myself" sense. Any time when I'm writing and the words are flowing, is a good time. Even when there are tears because of the contents of what it is I am writing.

If you put the question to me in certain words, I would absolutely say that my writing causes me to suffer. It tells of so many lost and shattered dreams, so many bitter personal disappointments, so much exhaustion and sadness and aloneness. It channels so much power—my whole life essence and life story, really—and much of that power is tainted, now, and unpleasant. But to answer in that way would be a failure of the wording of the question, because the deeper truth is that I find more happiness, peace, excitement, exuberance, anticipation, and most of all satisfaction when I am at the other computer and the words are flowing fast and free—no matter how awful the words themselves may be.

Floornight and Almost Nowhere are "diurnal," The Northern Caves and The Apocalypse of Herschel Schoen are "nocturnal."

My next work of fiction, whenever it does arrive (I am going to take a good long break first), will definitely be "diurnal." The "nocturnal" ones are painful to write in a way the "diurnal" ones aren't, and I don't want to go through that again for a long time, if ever.

[With only the slightest hint of irony] You take my meaning, of course.

[theoi-crow]

Hello! Correct me if I'm wrong but I believe Hercules' myth involves him being mortal before becoming the god of strength. Does this mean humans can ascend to godhood?

Hi! Sorry for the late reply, I've been busy but this ask is fascinating!

Hercules or Heracles (the Greek version of his name) is a demigod.

His mother, Alcmene, is human, while his father is Zeus. He was already part god like Perseus, Bellerophon and Achilles. Hercules was only able to ascend to godhood because he was already halfway there and while humans like Patroclus and Sappho can be possibly venerated as heroes or past ancestors, ancient Greece is very explicit on making sure that any human who ascends to godhood is a demigod, even if they are said to have a human mother and human father, like the story of Theseus whose human father was Aegeus but many myths claim it was actually Poseidon: (LINK)

So, can humans who are not already demigods ascend to godhood? No, according to the ancient Greeks, they can't.

This does not mean people didn't do extraordinary things, it's just that the ancient Greeks assumed whoever did extraordinary things was a demigod. This happened because when people accomplished something extraordinary in ancient Greece, the public considered that person to be someone who went beyond human limitation and thus considered more than human. People started suspecting a god as a possible parent.

Sometimes the person claiming to be a demigod did it for political reasons, like Alexander the Great who claimed to be the son of Zeus. Did people actually believe him? Not until he was able to prove his superhuman ability by creating one of the largest empires in human history at such a young age and in such a short time: (LINK)

Another thing I want to mention is how important ancestry was to the ancient Greeks.

Every Greek person only had one name and sometimes multiple people had the same name. So in order to differentiate between two people with the same name, their "last name" would be the name of their father, for example: "Theseus son of Aegus."

When someone didn't know who the father was, they would go by the mother's name, but if the person did something extraordinary, then people would start claiming they were the illegitimate child of a god (usually Zeus) and they would speculate and make stories about them emphasizing their status as a demigod (this is one of the reasons why there are a lot of stories about Zeus and rape. To the ancient Greeks, rape ment "going behind the father's back" even if the women wanted to be in a union with the god because to the ancient Greeks women did not have autonomy so their father's permission was very important).

Classifying a person who did the impossible as a demigod was very important to the ancient Greeks for a few reasons:

1. It would create the idea that only living demigods can do impossible things and thus disencourage "regular" humans from thinking they can also do that and thus keeping them in line for the politicians in power who ruled every aspect of their lives.

2. It cemented the idea that the gods still interact with their people and future demigods will be bestowed with their blessings and thus their hometowns would also benefit from said blessings.

3. Adding to reason number 2, it was also used for tourism.

4. It kept the honor of both women and children who didn't have a man claiming to be the head of their household and thus allowed the father of the mother to not have a shamed lineage.

5. It was especially used by kings to keep tyrants from taking over and kept civilians from rising against them for fear they would be cursed by their divine parental figure.

6. It was used to explain the unexplainable and as a way to keep people from thinking they could do something without the influence of a god and thus letting it get to their heads as we see in the cautionary tale of Bellerophon who grew impatient with his accomplishments being accredited to his father Poseidon and people assuming it was because he was a demigod and not because of his own efforts. After growing so frustrated over losing so much personal credit, he demanded a place on Olympus because of all he accomplished and was sent a gadfly by Zeus for using pegasus to force his way into Olympus and thus falling to his death after the gadfly bit pegasus who bucked Bellerophon off: (LINK)

WARNING!!!:

The idea that a human can be a god is very dangerous and one often used by toxic cults forcing their will on others. They push the narrative that someone is the reincarnation of Apollo or the child of Zeus and will use that narrative to try to force people to do things they don't want to do because a living "god" told them to do it.

People who believe they are a god are often described as having a "God Complex" (LINK). Not only is having a god complex dangerous to the person and everyone around them, but it's often associated with an extreme form of narcissism (LINK)

Why are god complexes so dangerous? Every human is fallible. We make mistakes and we grow and learn from those mistakes when we admit to them. People who have god complexes usually believe they are so perfect it's impossible for them to make mistakes so they blame everyone else around them and never take responsibility for themselves. As someone who grew up with very narcissistic adults with god complexes, it's frustrating to be gaslit and blamed for things you never did. They also don't believe in consent or believe they are above needing consent because they are a god and "know better."

If you meet someone claiming to be a god

RUN!

Seriously, run. Everyone has the ability to do and create extraordinary things but people with god complexes do not understand consent or how to respect the will of others because they think they are above other humans. Although I'm not a big fan of Witchtok, here's a little jingle that helps explain more about people with god complexes. (Tw: mentions of violence) (LINK)

Demigods are best left to mythology and storytelling.

They can be very inspiring, but a living "god" is very dangerous because they force their will onto others and are not above intimidation tactics. Here is a list of people who had been worshipped as living gods in the past and this includes Hitler, so you can see why the idea of "living gods" makes me very uncomfortable: (LINK)

These Delphic Maxims address god-complexes:

11) Φρόνει θνητά: Think mortal thoughts.

141) Εὖ πάσχε ὡς θνητός: Do as well as your mortal status permits.

The way that I personally interpret these two maxims is as a reminder that humans are human with human limits. It therefore asks that we not act like a god because that's assuming we no longer see ourselves as human.

It also asks that we not assume we can think like a god because that's over simplifying the way that the gods operate by applying human morals to them when they are beyond our comprehension and know things we'll never know, so they are a lot more complex than we'll ever understand, and assuming we know is to limit the gods.

But overall the main message is to respect the will of others by not thinking you are way better because you are more god-like than they are. EVERY person has the ability to be spiritual and the ability to create in such extraordinary ways that seem almost "god-like" to others but we are still human with human limits.

I personally believe human limits are beautiful and one of the many reasons why the gods are so fascinated with us. The gods get to see what we accomplish with such fragile lives, small limits that are carried by strong wills and big hearts.

I hope this helps!

[glacial-snowflakes]

Subtle hum of the Hudson River - part 2 // Loki

A/N: Hi darlings! I'm sorry for not posting but I kind of don't have that much time rn :( I'm so so sorry! I hope you like it! <3

Here is part 1

Pairing: Loki x fem!reader

Word count: 2,5k

Summary: You and Loki take a stroll down the river, letting yourself be honest with each other. The words you spoke have an unexpected result.

WARNINGS: it's all fluff, don't you worry!; parts written like this are retrospection

Likes, comments, and reblogs are greatly appreciated. It’s really motivating <3

Outrage and disgust filled every little whisper he heard. The team's looks were so sharp that they could cut one's skin open. Sighs full of hatred. Snarky remarks, supposedly innocent, yet hurt like hell. Why would anyone care about God of Mischief? Yes, he might live in the Tower, and yes, he might call himself one of the Avengers now, but he would never belong. Never. Not after what he did.

"They will never trust me, won't they?" Loki asked Thor, his sight focused on a cup he was holding in his frozen hands. The tea wasn't hot anymore. It went cold just like his heart that had never known the warmth of love. Trickster raised his eyes to meet Thor's. God of Thunder could swear that for a moment, he saw despair painted onto his brother's pale face. "I thought you didn't care about them nor their attitude towards you."

"I don't." The raven-haired man said immediately but seeing his brother's smile made him speak the truth. "I hate the way they look at me. I know what I did, and I deserve it. It's just— Nevermind." Loki sighed and took a sip of his cold tea. Speaking about his feelings was never his strong suit. Opening up to someone and spilling his guts felt like a nightmare he didn't want to experience at all costs. Runaway was the best choice.

"If you want to gain their trust, start with Lady Y/N. She's the most perfect for being the first one to break the ice with. Believe me." Thor gave his brother a clap on the back and nodded. "Go on."

"She's holding a knife right now. I am the one who stabs, not the one to be stabbed." Loki muttered. Thor's look said everything. In response, God of Mischief just rolled his eyes, stood up, and slowly approached you. You seemed so focused on the meal you were preparing that you didn't even notice him at first. He cleared his throat. "Lady Y/N."

You snapped out of the trance you were in just a few seconds ago. You lifted a knife you were holding in your hand. It was all covered up in ice, even sharper than the kitchen utensil itself. You held it up in front of your face as you were breathing rather heavily, scared of the sudden voice that made you come back to earth with a bump. Loki could swear that for a moment, your eyes turned impeccably white, just like the snow you could summon whenever you wanted.

"I— I'm so sorry, I didn't want to scare you. I truly mean it." Loki said immediately, waving his hands, the visible awkwardness painted onto his face.

"No, no! It's not your fault." You smiled to assure him that everything was fine. "Whenever I'm cooking, I'm in a trance. Just me, food, my mind free of all the bad thoughts that have been haunting me." You waved your hand in which you were holding a knife, and the ice melted away, just like that, not leaving any mark behind. Loki gave you a subtle nod and asked. "What are you cooking?"

"Oh, I won't tell you." You blurted out, which was followed by the awkward silence. "It's because I'm making my secret dish. Y/N's secret delicacy. No one knows what's inside except me." You explained in the blink of an eye. Loki seemed to be a little bit confused. Oh boy, you weren't good at small talks either. "If you want to, you can stay and sit here. We can talk about whatever you want or, if not, we can sit there in silence. It depends on you."

A sweet, delicate smile appeared on your face. You knew it was hard for Loki. You could see that. You noticed these quick looks he was giving whenever someone whispered his name. You noticed his need to be included when you were in a group, but everybody seemed to be ignoring him. Nobody wanted him to participate in meetings or conversations. He was in a crowd, yet he felt like he was all by himself. You saw all of this, and it made you feel bad. You knew what he did, but in the end, he was one of you now. Every god could bleed, and it hurt you to watch.

You wanted to make the raven-haired man feel better. Even if you were the only one to do this and every other person was about to judge you, you wanted Loki to feel included, to feel important. You promised yourself that it would be YOU who will make Loki feel welcomed, welcomed in a place where everyone pushed him away.

"Can I ask what your exact powers are?" Loki started the conversation, and you couldn't help but smiled. He truly wanted to talk with you. How adorable.

"I'm a demigod with cryokinetic powers. It would take a lot to talk about my abilities, but I will tell you that my favorite one is making ice daggers. Quick and simple, though it took some time to master the perfect shape." You chuckled. "Learning to aim ideally in a battle to cut through a chest and freeze someone's heart was the most problematic part."

"I didn't know you are so violent and tough."

"I am not... I guess I pretend to be." You said quietly, not looking upon a cutting board. A deep sigh escaped your mouth. "You know, it's not a job for everyone. Sometimes I'm too gentle for that."

You didn't let the silence last forever, as you immediately asked. "How do you find yourself here? Do you like the Tower?"

"Ah, you know... It has changed since the last time I visited." Loki said, clearly ashamed of all the damage he did back in 2012. Till these days, the thought of the Chitauri ravaging New York gave you the shivers. It was a very demanding and traumatizing first day of work as the Avenger.

"A renovation was a must." You joked; to clear the air and shoo away the atmosphere that was creeping towards you. "What about your room?"

"If you can call a small couch in Thor's bedroom my room, then I guess it's okay."

"You sleep on Thor's couch?" It was something that surprised you and not in a good way. You got that Loki wasn't everyone's favorite member, but there was a ton of empty bedrooms in the Tower in which he could live.

The God of Mischief nodded. "It's not that bad."

"I don't care. I will talk to Tony. You have to have your own bedroom. It's not like you can sleep on his couch forever. It's not comfortable in the long run." Loki opened his mouth to say something, but you cut him off. "I've got it covered, don't worry."

There was something in talking to you that made Loki feel at home. The way you looked at him; gave him the sweetest and prettiest smiles he has ever seen. There was no hate in your voice, no disgust that he's been experiencing on a daily basis since he could remember. You actually treated him like a human being, despite everything he has ever done. There was only one person he knew with such a kind heart, and you reminded him of her; you reminded him of Frigga.

"You know..." Loki begun. "I feel like you are the only one that doesn't want to cut my throat or stab my heart with my dagger."

You smiled gently. "I think you deserve a second chance."

"And why is that?"

"This is a story for another time."

***

"Where do you think you two are going?" Tony asked when you and Loki approached the elevator. God of Mischief gave him a quick stare before pushing the button with an arrow pointing down. You turned your head to face Tony, who was making himself a coffee. "We're going on a walk." You answered with a smile on your face.

"It's almost midnight."

"Said a man with a cup of coffee in his hand." You chuckled. "We're going to be fine. He's a god, and I'm a demigod. Nothing bad will happen to us."

You knew that it wasn't you who Tony was worried about; he still didn't trust Loki. When you joined the Avengers, you were one of the youngest in the group. Fresh blood, you could say. Stark watched you growing from an impulsive, careless kid with ice powers to a deliberate adult, a demigod aware of her cryokinetic strength. Seeing you change over the years, he felt responsible for your life. Even if Man of Iron knew you could handle yourself, Loki was too powerful. Tony refused to believe in his change, and with it, he was afraid that the Trickster was purely playing with you. If only they saw Loki as you did.

A few minutes later, you two were strolling down the New York. Just you, Loki, and the subtle hum of the Hudson River that made your troubled hearts feel at peace. Slowly paced steps. Your knuckles barely brushing each other woke up armies of butterflies in your stomachs that went on war. If you were bold enough, you would grab his hand in yours and intertwined your fingers together, holding him like it was the end of the world. It was something you truly wanted from the moment Thor brought him into the group.

"So..." Loki cleared his throat. "If you want to, we can talk or, if not, we can walk in silence. It depends on you."

"I'm not ready, not yet... I'm sorry."

"Don't you ever be sorry for not being ready to talk about your feelings, Lady Y/N." Loki grabbed your wrist and made you stop your steps. "Ever, okay?"

Something was mesmerizing in his beautiful eyes and a worried smile. Something that made your heart beat faster; palms get sweaty and clammy. Something that made you agree to everything he said. It was like a trick, but not like the ones he did from time to time to piss of Thor or Tony. No.

You snapped out of it and nodded. "Okay." You said and took your wrist from his hand. You began to walk again with Loki by your side when he asked. "Lady Y/N. A few months ago, I had asked why I deserve a second chance. You'd never gave me an answer. I'd still like to know."

You smiled, looking at the tiny waves on the river. "I knew you'd asked that sooner or later. I think I can finally tell you why I think this way." Your eyes focused on his face now. "Okay... Let me tell you something. It's not a surprise that you've made some pretty bad decisions in your life, and you've hurt a lot of people. You think you're a monster, and you don't deserve to be loved. You were never more wrong.

"In this group, you probably won't find one spotless person. We are people that made huge mistakes. You don't have to look far." You grabbed his hand without thinking. It was an impulse that just felt right. "I was a reckless kid when I got these powers. No one was there to guide me through them, learn how to be in control. And to a bullied kid like me, it was something that made me feel better than others. I was the one on the top. With my mortal mum that couldn't handle the demigod kid and my godly father that had so many half-blood children he didn't give a shit about, no one could stop me. The bullied became the bully. I don't like to call myself that, but this is true. I went through hell, and I made sure they felt the same way. I'm not proud of it, but that is who I was.

"So you have me. And then there's former HYDRA's witch, a billionaire who made deadly weapons, former Russian spy, former HYDRA's most famous brainwashed assassin and etcetera. Welcome, you're just as messed up as we are. Being here with us is your chance to become a better man. You belong here, Loki. Trust me."

At that moment, something broke inside of him. For a second, he stopped being a mysterious, private God of Mischief that didn't want to let in anybody. He let go of all the concerns and worries that had been occupying his mind for far too long. He threw away the image of a monster he considered himself to be.

The words you spoke made him realize that as long as you were next to him, there was nothing he couldn't do. You were the key to his pure heart from the beginning. You were the answer he'd been looking for all along. You were the light that could sweep away the darkness that'd been consuming him from within, and he wanted you to shine beside him forever.

When Loki leaned over to your ear, all you could feel was his warm, shaky breath on your neck that sent the shivers down your spine. "Don't hate me for this." He whispered almost inaudibly as his hands found their way to your hips. His long, lean fingers quite roughly pressed onto your skin. Just like electricity, his touch pierced through your whole body, made your knees get weaker. Your senses were fogged, almost like you were under control. All you could focus on was how his mellowy soft lips felt against yours. The kiss was sweet and passionate, yet gentle at the same time. It wasn't hasty and rough like you'd expect it to be, no. There was something else, something special about it. It was Loki's way to describe every little feeling he had for you. Your adorable smiles you'd been giving him, slight touches you didn't even think he noticed, tea and sympathy. It was all for what he wanted to return the favor.

For a moment, you weren't sure if this was real. Was it just a pure imagination of your mind that was thirsty for love and affection? Or maybe it was a trick, fake reality that you'd fallen for so naively? No, it couldn't be. You could feel it. Feel your heart crazily pounded like it wanted to escape the cage in which it was held for far too long. It was the only thing that helped you stay sober.

You didn't want to stop this. You wanted to stay in this moment forever, scared that once it ended, it would never come back.

"Loki..." You started when you two pulled out to catch a breath. "I could never hate you for making my dreams come true."

The raven-haired man didn't say anything. In response, he wrapped his arms around your still weak body and brought you even closer, so there was no space left between you and him. You felt his chin gently placed on the top of your head. With a smile on your face, you embraced him tightly and snuggled your face onto his chest. All that you heard was his heart pounding fast in the same rhythm as yours, as the subtle hum of the Hudson River accompanied your feelings growing for each other at that moment.

tag: @handmaiden-of-mischief @amiechuchu

[amaryllisblackthorn]

a lot of people have this idea that Annabeth's been like, a Luke apologist and in denial since the very beginning but it's not really true?. Annabeth was angry at Luke for his betrayal in the end of Lightning Thief and during Sea of Monsters. It's only until the end of The Titan's Curse that she starts the 'Luke really isn't that bad' kind of thing.

the end of Lightning Thief:

"I can't believe that Luke..." Annabeth's voice faltered. Her expression turned  angry and sad. "Yes. Yes, I can believe it. May the gods curse him...He was never the same after his quest."

"When I get back next summer," she said, "we'll hunt down Luke. We'll ask for a quest, but if we don't get approval, we'll sneak off and do it anyway. Agreed?"

 She was really angry at him during Sea of Monsters. Her vision from the Sirens does indicate that deep down she may believe she's able to save him, or at least wants to, but it doesn't diminish the hurt and anger she does feel.

"How could you?" Annabeth sounded so angry I thought she'd explode. "Thalia saved your life! Our lives! How could you dishonor her--"

"Liar!"

"I understand you want to destroy the camp!" she yelled. "You're a monster!"

"Because you have none of your own [intelligence]!"

"That's disgusting!" Annabeth said.

"You're insane," Annabeth said.

"Go to Tartarus," she said.

All those above are on the Princess Andromeda with Luke. Then later, to Percy:

She shook her head. "We made a dozen safe houses like this. I doubt Luke even remembers where they are. Or cares."

Even in the beginning-ish of Titan's Curse, she doesn't trust him. When he's struggling under the sky and asking for her help, she's hesitant. It's only when the sky begins to fall  that she goes to help hold it.

Annabeth had tears in her eyes. She reached down like she wanted to touch Luke's face, but at the last second she hesitated. "What happened?" she asked.

"Why should I trust you?" Annabeth asked. Her voice was filled with hurt.

Then the darkness above Luke began to crumble, like a cavern roof in an earthquake. Huge chunks of black rock began falling. Annabeth rushed in just as a crack appeared, and the whole ceiling dropped. She held it somehow--tons of rock. She kept it from collapsing on her and Luke with her own strength.

However!! There's a shift in her feelings by the time Percy and Thalia rescue her and I personally think it's because she's aware that Luke 'saved' her life for the time being after Atlas ordered him to kill her after Artemis took the sky -- even though he was super complicit in her being in that situation in the first place. Compare:

Luke hesitated. "She--she may yet be useful, sir. Further bait."

and

"We'll bring Luke back," Annabeth pleaded. "To Olympus. He...he'll be useful."

I don't think it's a conscious parallel on Annabeth's part per se, but Rick Riordan using the parallel to indicate the connection. I think that's when Annabeth discovers that Luke does still care deep down, and that deep down the person that she knows is there. which is fair, because before this point he hadn’t given her any indication seeing as he literally directed  Oreius to eat her. that’s a whole ‘nother write-up, though, i think. i digress.

Once she knows this, she starts to view him as someone being manipulated and taken advantage of by Kronos, someone who was able to manipulate Ares, a god, in the first book, -- she's not wrong! He is being manipulated. That doesn't absolve him from his horrible behavior especially towards her, but she understands that Luke is a troubled, traumatized young man being taken advantage of by the evil King Titan, and she's also aware that literally no one else cares enough to try to save him.

like, the language Annabeth uses to describe Luke in the end of Titan’s Curse is the same that Percy uses to describe the demigods on the  Titans’ side in Last Olympian. 

"You don't believe me about Luke," Annabeth said, "but we'll see him again. He's in trouble, Percy. He's under Kronos's spell."

vs

I tried to wound his men, not kill. That slowed me down, but these weren’t monsters. They were demigods who’d fallen under Kronos’s spell. I couldn’t see faces under their battle helmets, but some of them had probably been my friends.

there’s another callback with the language Percy uses to describe the opposing demigods in Last Olympian. this time, to what Percy says to Luke at the end of Lightning Thief.

“He’s brainwashing you, Luke.”

“You’re being used, Luke. You and Ares both. Don’t listen to Kronos.”

vs

This kid was getting brainwashed—trained to hate the gods and lash out because he’d been born half Olympian. Kronos was using him, and yet the kid thought I was his enemy.

Poseidon put his hand on my shoulder. “Percy, there were only a few demigod warriors aboard that ship, and they all chose to battle for Kronos. Perhaps some heeded your warning and escaped. If they did not . . . they chose their path.”

“They were brainwashed!” I said. “Now they’re dead and Kronos is still alive. That’s supposed to make me feel better?

Percy has sympathy for the demigods manipulated by Kronos to be on the Titan’s sides; he sees them as victims. the reason he doesn’t for Luke, I feel, is because Luke’s betrayal made it personal. I think this is where Percy’s fatal flaw comes into play, honestly, with the personal loyalty. both in regards to the personal betrayal to Percy, as well as Percy’s loyalty to Annabeth (and thus Luke’s betrayal of Annabeth, too). and i feel this also applies, to a lesser extent, to Ethan. but that’s a whole ‘nother write-up, too (one day!)

there is, admittedly, the factor of Luke’s age in comparison to Percy, Annabeth, and most of the other campers. there’s definitely a power imbalance -- especially with Annabeth, which isn’t okay, obviously.  so even though he’s a victim and young himself, that power imbalance in regards to his actions, manipulations, etc is messed up and not okay. 

even so, Luke is still pretty young himself -- not as young as the others, but still young. like, i got into this series when i was younger than Percy and Annabeth were, so Luke, like most early 20 year olds, seemed very old to me in that regard; it’s only as i got older and closer to his are that i started to really realize that heck he was really young. so while Luke is definitely an adult in regards to the relationship he has with Percy, Annabeth, and other younger demigods -- which he should have been mindful of and makes his manipulation etc very messed up and not okay -- he’s also young himself which is something to keep in mind. like, Luke is only around 19-22? in the series. That puts him at a power imbalance in regards to Annabeth and Percy, in which he's very much an adult in the relationship, but outside of that he's still pretty young! he’s a college kid, which when you’re younger seems pretty old but then you are one and realize differently -- his brain hasn't even fully developed yet. but i’m like, seriously digressing. 

my intended point was that i disagree with the interpretation that Annabeth was blinded by emotions and a toxic relationship which led her to make excuses for Luke and unable to see him for what he really was etc,--  because Annabeth was angry at him after his betrayal and had even thought he was different, that he didn’t care anymore. The ‘Luke apologist’ behavior only starts at the end of Titan’s Curse, the third book in the five book series. I just feel like her ... feelings? perspective? position? idk the right word.... is often misrepresented? 

she becomes very defensive over Luke’s ‘inner goodness’ and stuff because she’s literally the only one who wants to save him and knows it. she knows what he’s done isn’t okay, but she keeps driving it home that he’s being manipulated because he is! it doesn’t excuse his actions but it doesn’t have to. by the end of titan’s curse, annabeth sees luke as someone terribly lost and no one trying, willing, or caring enough to save him. and like, she’s right when she sees luke as someone who isn’t beyond saving, who’s extremely lost and being manipulated through his trauma and anger -- it doesn’t excuse what he’s doing but that doesn’t make him someone not worthy of saving. despite what he’s done, luke is still her family and she will fight for him. she sees luke the same way percy sees the other opposing demigods in the last olympian and she’s right. she’s not making excuses for him, she doesn’t think he’s done nothing wrong, she’s just not willing to give up on him and she was right. as the child in the relationship/dynamic, it wasn’t her responsibility to be the one to save him and shouldn’t have been, but she wasn’t wrong in how she saw Luke.

 like, their was definitely a power imbalance in their relationship and it’s definitely important to acknowledge that, but i feel like people tend to like, erase annabeth’s agency, for lack of a better word, and attribute her desire to save Luke as being tragically misplaced? like, Luke has totally wronged Annabeth and mistreated her terribly, but like...I find her not giving up on him mostly admirable and not pitiable, though like I said as the child in their dynamic it wasn’t her responsibility.  i’m rambling though.

mostly this post was made to remind people that Annabeth was angry towards Luke, and rightfully so, until near the end of Titan’s Curse, which is where her defending Luke and insisting he could be saved really started, likely with Luke indicating he actually still cared deep down for the first time being the catalyst.  especially since it seems a lot of people give like the impression they think she’s done it from the very beginning? idk ive definitely rambled a lot and lost my main point sometime ago or something. enjoy this anyway.

[thebigqueer]

Ok, here we go. Dark!Bianca idea. Shortly after the events in the desert, a severely injured Bianca is found by agents of the Titans who were shadowing the quest party off-page. She is brought back to Titan HQ and is convinced to join their crusade against the gods while her friends and family think she's dead. Jump ahead to BotL, instead of Kelli the Empousa, it is a mysterious masked assassin who attacks Percy and Rachel at Goode. The events mostly play out unchanged until Geryon's (1/8)

ranch, where instead of Bianca, it is the ghost of Maria di Angelo who is revealed to be sending Iris messages to Percy about Nico, while also strongly hinting that Bianca's still alive. Jump ahead to Mt St. Helens, Percy fights the assassin again, and during his stint on Ogygia, Percy begins to put two and two together after the assassin demonstrated skills similar to the Hunters. At Antaeus' Arena, the assassin is finally unmasked to reveal a still-alive but scarred Bianca, replacing (2/8)

Ethan Nakamura as the demigod enforcer. Percy is convinced that Bianca is being mind-controlled and goes to Mt Tam to rescue her as well as stop Kronos. However, when he confronts her, Bianca reveals that she's operating of her own free will, feeling vengeful against the gods for robbing her of her life and having pledged her loyalty to her new Titan master. Kronos intends to make Bianca the prophesy kid, promising her the free will she craves so badly as well as promising not to hurt (3/8)

Nico. Going into the Last Olympian, Percy and Nico are both determined to convince Bianca that she's making a mistake, and this time Nico's duplicity is not to simply learn about his mother but to try and summon her spirit to get through to Bianca. At the same time, Kronos gradually starts treating Bianca as less of an ally and more of a tool, and the Titans' actions cause her to have doubts even though she dosen't know what else to do. It all comes to a head in the final battle.(4/8)

Nico returns from the Underworld by himself early, giving Hades an ultimatum to come and fight or hide. Just before the final attack, Kronos sends Bianca to infiltrate Olympus to disable the magic defenses, but Nico arrives to intercept her and make one last bid to save her. They fight, with both begging the other to stand down even as they slug it out. Finally, just as Percy arrives to chase Kronos, the battered siblings' duel ends when Nico gives another ultimatum. He throws down his (5/8)

sword and gives Bianca, now reduced to fear and frustration-induced tears, the choice between perusing her grudge and allowing herself to continue being Kronos’s slave or doing the right thing. Finally able to make a legitimate choice of her own, Bianca chooses to turn her back on the Titans. She still ends up wounded, but unlike Ethan in canon, Nico manages to save his sister while Percy and Kronos have their final battle. After everything ends, Percy petitions for Bianca’s pardon along (6/8)

with the rest of his list, though Bianca turns it down, realizing the harm she almost caused to the person she loved more than anybody else. She is given a reduced sentence in service to her father, and though she does not properly forgive any of the gods that hurt her, she does recognize that the spite and anger she felt would only lead to more death. Nico gets to visit her occasionally, and she starts a road to redemption that Luke never got the chance to take. In HoO, Bianca is (7/8)

more of a background character, but it is she that finds Hazel in Asphodel and alerts Nico to her. Overall, dark!Bianca is an anti-villain who’s affiliation with Kronos is clearly drawn from her pain and grief over the gods’ interference in her life, but her saving grace is her brother. Nico manages to pull her out of the darkness and save her from becoming the same monster Luke became. What do you think? (bear in mind, this is my rough draft) (8/8)

Okay, WOW. Anon, I am actually going to start a petition to make you the new Percy Jackson author because that was such an interesting plot to read.

First of all, I love that you replaced Bianca with Ethan. As interesting as he was in the series, and as much as I loved his character, after reading through your rough draft, I feel like Bianca would have been a much better character to use throughout PJO. Her arc could have been expanded upon and completed thoroughly, and it could have made a lot of sense. Ethan felt more like a representation of "demigods turned to the other side," which I get is the point, but I loved the way you used Bianca because with your plot, her character could have been used so well to properly show how easily the Titan army manipulated kids.

Furthermore, I feel like your plot with Bianca could have been a much better way to use her character throughout the series. From my interpretation, in canon she seemed more like a stand-in tool just to enhance Nico's own character arc and his motives, but your plot for her would have actually given her some kind of foundation and an actual arc for her to go through. You've given her such an interesting character and I think it really provides more justice to what she could have been.

I also love the way that not only did you give her a better arc, but you also enhanced Nico's own arc and the plot, too. Her death in the books seemed more symbolic to him and a turning point in his character, but with her character in your AU, it's both important to Nico and Bianca. You've given her an actual character, and you've set up such an interesting conflict between Nico and Bianca.

Additionally, I love the divide you've created between them. I think that - based on what we know about her in the books - as much as she loves her brother, Bianca also feels very limited with him because of how she's been forced to grow up and be his savior. She understands that he's only a child, though, which I think could also play into her own hatred for the gods - they've not only destroyed her family, but now they're forcing her to take the role of an adult when she's a mere child, too? She was never angry at Nico - she was only ever mad with the gods.

Maybe that's something that Nico also feels bad about, and maybe he tells her about it when they're standing each other down. Maybe she lets him know that she never hated him or felt that he was bringing her down.

Also, I want to add that I adore the way you put them on opposite sides. It sets up such an interesting dynamic to their relationship because here you have two people who love each other so much, but they're on two different sides of a large war. They're both too stubborn to go onto each other's sides, and Nico knows Bianca's only going to get herself into more danger. I just love the potential that has for both of their characters.

I know Percy had a large fear about Nico being another kid to join Kronos' army, so I bet Bianca being on his team would have left Percy incredibly terrified for Nico, too, because he knew how much Nico loved Bianca. Would he have been nervous for Nico's ability to change his mind? Nico knows he'd never join Kronos, but would Percy have known?

And, knowing that Bianca's now on the Kronos side, how would Percy react? Because he felt pretty guilty about her death in TTC, right? Would he feel guilty that she's on the other side now, too? Would he try to reason with her, only to push her further away? I'd love to see how Percy would deal with knowing that Bianca - an important child of the Big Three - would react to her being there. He was already nervous about Nico joining sides, but having Bianca there would have really scared him.

And the part about Bianca finding Hazel instead of Nico? That was mind-blowing. I love everything about that situation because now that introduces Hazel into the narrative of Nico and Bianca's story. My question for you would be how does Hazel's character change now? How does she fit in with Nico and Bianca? Because in Heroes of Olympus she's clearly very insecure about her relationship with Nico and how he views her, but if she actually knew Bianca, how would she feel? Would she feel more left out (knowing that Bianca and Nico have known each other much longer and have a stronger connection with each other)? Would she be distrustful? And how would the three of them adapt to this additional family member? I have high hopes that by the end they would all love each other very much, but I'm just really curious into how Hazel's addition would influence the dynamic of all three.

And, essentially, it all ends into a somewhat win-win situation. Bianca's still living; Nico's got two new sisters; Hazel now has a new family.

I think this is such an interesting concept, and I'd love to read it. If you ever post it anywhere, please do share the link! This was such an intriguing plot to go through and, again, I think this could have been a much better use of Bianca's character.

Thank you so much for sharing it with me.

[radiantmists]

pjo + rqg?

(send me two+ fandoms and I’ll give you some thoughts about a crossover!)

Okay, juicy! I ended up spending way longer on this than 10 minutes but I had fun...

The obvious point of meeting is the greek gods being real in both settings, but the challenge with using that approach is that the gods in PJO function as actual characters, albeit powerful ones, whereas in RQG they're very removed forces of nature. They don't have specific interests for which they give quests; they have a sort of general value set and as long as you live by that, you have their favor. And compare the glimpse of Hades we get in RQG Rome with the portrayal of him in PJO-- very different, yeah?

(at this point i got distracted by something and when i came back i didn’t remember where the above was going, so i’m just gonna leave it there to contemplate)

But! I’m now thinking about the rqg cast as demigods, and specifically the fact that Zolf is like, older, which is established in PJO as an unusual thing for demigods and especially kids of the big three. And like, his brother died in a mining accident, so maybe that was Hades or some other god trying to kill him and getting Feryn instead. And so Zolf goes to sea where he’s not constantly harassed by Hades like he would be in a mine, and miraculously survives a shipwreck (or two?), probably thanks to his powers, and maybe one of those wrecks is partially caused by a monster that’s attracted to his demigod-ness so he’s got some more self-blame attached to that, but he’s also  got this weird relationship with Poseidon where he doesn’t want to be ungrateful for his own life being saved and his powers, but he also resents him for all the suffering that’s happened  around him because of his heritage, and that Poseidon hadn’t shielded his family and friends at all.

So he comes on shore after his last shipwreck, having lost the leg to whatever monster there is, and he decides that now that he’s got no one he’s really attached to, he’s going to just fight some monsters. And one day he comes upon some girl getting attacked, and wades in.

Sasha  in this scenario would be a child of Hermes, which I especially like because iirc children of Hermes get basically no powers, they just tend to be sneaky and have the base demigod build. She never knew her mortal parent, and instead got picked up by Barrett, who’s most likely a mortal who can see through the Mist and keeps some monsters on the payroll as well as some demigods to keep them in line. he doesn’t tell her a lot about the grander system, just makes use of her abilities. At some point she’d encountered Eldarion, who’s some kind of minor immortal, maybe a dryad or something, who plays the role of Chiron but... worse. 

Sasha gets away, but out of Eldarion’s protection the monsters who work for Barrett track her down, and this is when she meets Zolf. She’s a bit leery of him at first because the other fully-adult demigods she’s met have all worked for Barret and made questionable compromises of morality in  order to stay alive, but she’s  starting to realize that she genuinely can’t make it on her own, so she agrees to travel with him when he asks. For his part, Zolf is like gdi I can’t believe I’m getting attached to someone again, this always ends badly, but he can hardly leave her to fend for herself either, right?

Within a fairly short window of meeting each other, maybe the same encounter actually, they come across Hamid, who has no idea about any of this myth stuff. Neither of them can figure out who his godly parent is bc he manifests some accidental fire powers, but he really doesn’t seem like any child of Hephaestus they’ve met. Zolf also really can’t leave this one to fend for himself because he has no freaking clue what’s going on and is horrified by killing monsters. He’s not sure how Hamid survived this long by himself.

So they go off together and eventually encounter Wilde, who’s mortal but the Oracle of Apollo. The idea of prophecies and fate has always vaguely infuriated Zolf, plus Wilde is still Wilde, so they don’t get off on a good note, but you also can’t ignore prophecies, so when he says he’s been  guided to them and then goes all funny and vomits a poem that, when recited back to him, he scoffs at the quality of, they don’t much have a choice.

The prophecy probably involves them foiling some plot by a child of Hades, which is maybe why Hades has been so aggressive toward Zolf in the past; along the way they discover that Hamid is actually the child of a monster, specifically a dragon, which iirc is a thing in actual greek myth even if i can’t remember it coming up in PJO. (this is how he’s survived so long; monsters aren’t drawn to him bc he’s not a demigod). 

hamid, i think, figures this out a bit before the rest of the group, and is very freaked out by how his friends will react to it so he keeps it secret. the secret gets blown wide open soon after they meet grizzop, who joined the hunters of artemis bc she’s cool and because immortality and is now off away from the others, tracking some monster involved in the main plot. i think when they reconvene with the hunters, one of them recognizes what hamid is, and then there’s a whole drama where the others have to deal with the revelation while also preventing him from being killed.

wilde manages to be pretty useful despite being mortal and they all get attached to their squishy poet friend, especially when the fact that he never quite asked to be an Oracle and the way it messes with him becomes clear to them.

azu is a child of aphrodite and probably comes from a place where there is a more camp half-blood claiming, group training structure, but she’s definitely the black sheep of the aphrodite group because while love is important to her, she’s really interested in fighting. when whatever oracle they have tells them an aphrodite person has to go on a quest she’s pretty universally nominated, not that she has a problem with that.

cel is a sorceror person along the lines of medea or circe but less evil; i’m not sure where exactly they fit into the plot though. ed is also definitely a child of Apollo in this, and the things with dyslexia and adhd from PJO canon definitely come into play in his backstory as the black sheep of his own family.

zolf and,  to a lesser extent, sasha, tend to come into conflict with grizzop and azu who buy into the whole ‘greatness of gods’ and ‘fate’ stuff a lot more. azu starts to get somewhat disillusioned of all this as the quest goes on and she sees what being a hero actually means. zolf gets into a lot of shouting matches with poseidon, though i think in this universe it would be reparable bc poseidon is a bit more like PJO poseidon who isn’t perfect but is less of a remote dickhead.

i don’t exactly know how things resolve immediately, but an epilogue would definitely be sasha establishing a sort of school/home/camp for demigods that doesn’t push them into roles the way the ones azu and she knew tended to do, and focuses more on giving them a safe place and enough fighting skill to survive, as well as a community who understand, the way zolf helped her. 

[nikibogwater]

Two Worlds, One Family--a Mermaid AU oneshot

I don't know, y'all, it's ten after one and I can't think of any other titles so just accept the cheesey Phil Collins reference and go with it--

A few weeks ago, my dear FMA Buddy Willow requested a fic set in my Merman!Douxie AU (you can see the rough character designs for that here). Well, today, I desperately needed a break from working on the RotT fic, but I also still felt like writing, so I sat down and cranked this one out in basically one sitting.

It uh, sort of got away from me, I'll admit lol.

We've got sappy Siren!Zoe x Merman!Douxie, Underwater Found Family, Archie having to be the Adult of the group, and also an honest-to-goodness argument between our favorite Magical Siblings, which is something I've sort of always wanted to tackle, but I was never able to find a good way to do it while sticking to current canon. Here, they're both younger and have been in a pod together for several hundred years, allowing the stress of their situation to build up and--Y'know what, I'll just let you guys read the dang thing now.

~~~~~

The black waves rolled beneath an inky, starless sky. A freezing wind cut through the air like a knife. Salty foam sprayed up from where the water lapped against Zoe’s perch. It was a thoroughly miserable night to be away from her nest.

But still, she waited.

She shivered and folded her wings around herself tightly. Twenty-seven years, one-hundred and eighty-three days. That was how long it had been since she’d last seen him. He had said in his last message that he would be here tonight. And so, no matter how fiercely the wind beat against her, no matter how badly the freezing spray stung as it hit her, she refused to move. Douxie’s life was already haunted by uncertainties and betrayals. She would rather die than contribute to such things.

Finally, she heard him. His call was masked beneath the sound of the sea, but she could feel it reverberating through her like a roll of thunder--the steady, fast-paced, yet gentle clicks of a merman searching for his mate.

Her wings snapped open, and though the rush of cold air that met her was unpleasant, she didn’t flinch. Electric blue eyes stared fixedly at the water below her for a moment. And then she finally saw it--the silvery sheen of moonlight hitting dark blue scales.

Zoe didn’t even wait for him to make it all the way to the surface before she dove in.

Douxie tumbled back in the water as she slammed into him, and for a few joyous moments, his world was made up entirely of swirling bubbles, warm feathers, and the feeling of Zoe in his arms. He had just enough sense to bring both of them back up to the surface before her lips were on his. Her wings closed around him tightly, and he could feel the tingle of her electric magic in the water around him, but she was just as careful as ever. She’d never shocked him, not in all the years they’d known each other.

“Sorry I’m late,” he breathed, once she’d pulled back for air. She shook her head, nose brushing against his.

“Doesn’t matter,” she said gruffly. Her voice was choked with tears, but he knew better than to point that out. “I’m just glad you’re here.”

“I never would have guessed,” he chuckled, trailing a few kisses down her cheek as she huffed and half-heartedly swatted his shoulder. There were a few moments of silence as they simply held each other, broken only by the sound of the waves and a few soft, contented clicks from Douxie. Zoe had asked him centuries ago why he always clicked when he was happy. He’d seemed genuinely surprised to hear that she didn’t do the same. Merperson biology was a very strange thing indeed. Finally, Zoe picked her head up from his shoulder and looked him in the eye.

“Nari and Archie?”

“Safe,” he answered. “They wanted to see you, but I didn’t want to risk bringing Nari up to the surface, and Archie agreed to stay with her. We had a close call with the Order a few weeks ago off the coast of Ireland--they never actually saw her, and I don’t think they know she’s been hiding in the ocean but...” He shook his head, sighing wearily. “...They can’t know where she is. Not ever. I just couldn’t let her come with me tonight.”

“I understand,” Zoe said, brushing his wet bangs out of his eyes.

“How is the flock?” Douxie asked.

“...Surviving,” she replied after a moment’s hesitation. “...We lost Ariadne to a navy ship two years ago. They shot her right out of the air....took her body on board and we couldn’t get her back. We don’t know what they did with her corpse.” She felt him shudder at the news. He pulled her back in and kissed her temple.

“I’m sorry,” he breathed, and she knew he meant it, knew he felt her pain as keenly as if it was his own. He always was a little too empathetic for his own good. Still, she couldn’t bring herself to tell him that, so she simply clutched him tight and let him stroke her hair, as the waves gently rocked the both of them.

“The world’s getting more and more dangerous for people like us,” she murmured into his shoulder. “And the ironic thing is now it’s all because of mortals. As if angry demigods and warmongering trolls weren’t enough on their own.”

“Killahead tipped the balance in their favor. But I’d hoped they would use that as an opportunity to make peace with magic. Not try to exterminate it for good...”

“You’ve always put too much faith in humans, Douxie,” Zoe sighed.

“Perhaps,” he admitted, hand still carding idly through her feathery locks. “...Merlin was a human too, though.” Zoe snorted at that.

“If that crotchety old windbag was the best humanity has to offer, then it’s no wonder things turned out like this.”

“He saved my life, Zoe,” Douxie argued softly, pulling back to look her in the eye. “I would never have met you if it weren’t for him.”

“I still say he was a far ways off from being a ‘good man,’” she retorted. “...But I understand your loyalty to him.” Douxie felt her right wing shift around him--the same one he had bandaged and tended all those centuries ago. “...Enough of that. I have more important news for you. There’s talk of a secret community of magical creatures like us forming in the New World--a settlement off the western coast. The trolls found a new Hearthstone there, and they’re building a sanctuary. The water there is supposed to be charged with all kinds of magic, and I’ve even heard rumors about merpeople living there. The flock has decided to migrate there, at least temporarily. I would advise you to do the same. Nari would be happier in warmer waters, and there’s a chance you could join a larger pod there. You haven’t seen one of your own species in centuries, right? And we...” she faltered, realizing that she was letting her eagerness get the better of her now. “...we could be together again. No more of these long separations.”

“...It almost sounds too good to be true,” Douxie breathed.

“Maybe it is,” Zoe chuckled mirthlessly. “But we won’t know unless we check it out for ourselves. I’m leaving with the flock in the morning.”

“I’ll....consider it,” Douxie relented. “If it was just me and Arch, I’d be on my way there tonight, no hesitation. But now that I have Nari to protect--”

“I get it,” Zoe cut him off quickly. “I just....thought I’d let you know. In case it works out somehow.” She looked down, the hand that was resting over his heart clenching into a fist.

“...Hey.” Douxie tilted her chin back up to look her in the eye. “Whatever happens, wherever we go, I know we’ll always find each other again. That’s what it means to be a pod.”

“...Right.” Zoe gave a half-hearted laugh, and gently bumped her forehead against his. “Alright. Now I want to know what you’ve been getting up to. Tell me everything.”

“We’d be here all night if I did that,” Douxie chuckled.

“Sounds good to me,” Zoe murmured, drawing him close once more.

*****

Douxie didn’t return until it was almost sunrise.

Nari hadn’t been expecting anything else, but she still couldn’t help the way her heart twisted in her chest at the sight of his exhausted, melancholy countenance. He slipped into the den quietly, stopping just long enough to renew the concealing spells around the entrance, before floating to the floor with a sigh, burying his face in a still-sleeping Archie’s fur. He’d hardly been there a full minute when he blearily opened one eye, and looked around as though he was missing something.

“Nari?” he whispered into the darkness. “Everything alright?” He must have felt her aura--there were times when Nari found the magical bond they shared somewhat inconvenient. She sighed, unhooked her tail from the frond she had anchored herself to, and flitted over to him.

“All is well. I....woke early.” The truth was, she’d been awake for most of the night, head too cluttered up with unwanted thoughts to let her rest. She curled her tail up beneath her and settled on the floor. “How is Zoe?”

“Beautiful,” Douxie answered without thinking, then turned bright red. Nari stifled a giggle in her hand. “I-I mean she’s fine. The flock’s down to just twelve sirens now... The mortals are getting braver and more dangerous. They’re going to fly west and try to find safer nesting grounds.” He paused, his tail swishing up and down thoughtfully.

“...Douxie?” Nari prodded.

“Zoe was telling me about a settlement across the ocean--a secret community of magical creatures. There’s a Trollmarket near the coast, and....possibly merpeople like me. That’s where she and her flock are going now. She... She wants us to go too.”

“This idea troubles you,” Nari observed, feeling the way his aura was turning with uncertainty. “Why?”

“It’s quite literally on the other side of the world,” Douxie explained. “We would have to cross open waters to get there, and even with my magic, the journey could take months. There’s no guarantee we would be able to find safe places to hide on the way, and even once we get there...” He sighed, ears drooping slightly. “...I don’t know if we’d really be safe.”

“We will never be safe anywhere, Douxie,” Nari said softly. “For as long as you are with me, you will be in danger. The Order will continue to search for me. They will not stop until they have found me and opened the Genesis Seals. They are not limited by time and space as we are. They could find me on the other side of the world just as easily as they could here.” She hated the way his aura seemed to grow cold as she spoke, his hand clenching against the stone he was resting on.

“...So what are you saying?” he asked after a long pause. “Do you think we should go?” Nari looked down, hands wringing in her lap.

For nearly five-hundred years, Douxie and Archie had dedicated their lives to caring for her. They had been her fins when she was still learning to swim, her warmth in the cold, deep waters of the north. They had been her guardians, and more than that, they had been her brothers. Both Douxie and Archie had taken her into their tiny pod, accepted her as one of their own, though she could not be more different from them if she tried. She had lost count of the number of times they bled for her, and she for them, as they fought to withstand the dangers of the sea together.

But she could never ignore the longing she felt in Douxie’s spirit, his heartache every time he was forced to part with Zoe in order to take Nari to safer waters. She couldn’t blind herself to the tears she knew he shed when he thought he was alone, couldn’t pretend all was well when that empty space in his heart hurt so much he couldn’t keep his aura from twisting in pain.

Which was why she now found herself telling him something she had never wanted to tell him.

“...I think you and Archie should go,” she whispered. “...and I will stay.”

Douxie’s tail thrashed suddenly, and his soul sparked with something akin to anger. Archie snorted and whipped his head up, ears perked and blearily searching for the source of his Familiar’s distress.

“No.” Douxie’s voice was hard as he grasped her by the shoulder. “That’s not an option.”

“You know it is, Douxie!” Nari argued. “You are not bound to me by the laws of magic, I am not your appointed ward--You could be with Zoe if you would only--”

“If I would only what? Cast out one of my own? Break my pod apart?!”

“Who are we casting out...?” Archie yawned. “Can it wait until morning, perhaps?”

“But you love her!” Nari argued desperately. “You deserve to be with her, you deserve better than this.”

“And I also love you! I don’t give a damn about the wizarding customs, you are part of my family, and down here, family is just as much of a binding contract as any ward-appointment or whatever!”

“Oh for the love of Poseidon, didn’t you two just have this fight not three decades ago?” Archie snapped. “Nari, you know how important pods are to merpeople--that includes mates, friends, offspring, and siblings. We leave none behind, no matter the cost. And if you’ve got a problem with that, well you should have considered that before agreeing to come with us all those centuries ago. I did try to warn you, after all. Now both of you, settle down and get some sleep, for goodness’ sake! It sounds like we have a long swim ahead of us.” He swam around in a circle three times, and resettled on the ground. Douxie opened his mouth to argue further, but Archie grabbed the front of his shirt with his teeth and pulled him down on top of him. “I said settle down,” he huffed. “You too, Nari. I know you were awake half the night working yourself into this state.”

“I was not working myself into anything,” she grumbled, curling up between Archie’s paws.

A long, heavy silence fell upon them. Nari could feel Douxie’s aura gradually settling, as anger gave way to exhaustion. She could have sworn he was almost asleep, when suddenly, his hand found hers and squeezed it.

“...I won’t settle for less Nari,” he whispered. “That’s why I won’t leave you. I need all of you--Zoe, Archie, and you, and I won’t....I can’t stop fighting until all of you are safe, and we can all be together. I know Zoe will be alright with her flock, and we can always find each other again. But I won’t leave you to face the Order on your own.” She heard him shift, readjusting his head where it was pillowed against Archie. “...I’d rather die.”

Nari swallowed the knot that rose in her throat and squeezed his hand in return.

“...Merpeople are so very unusual,” she murmured. “Even after all this time, I’ll never fully understand you, or your ways. But....I am truly happy to be part of them--part of your pod--even if I cannot fathom these sorts of bonds.”

“You’ll get it eventually,” Douxie huffed. “...Anyways, Arch was right--”

“I’m always right,” the Familiar interjected without bothering to open his eyes.

“--we should get some sleep. I guess we have a long journey ahead of us.”

“You have decided then?” Nari asked.

“The opportunity’s too good to pass up. Just promise me you’ll stay with us.”

“...Alright,” she whispered. “I promise.” There was another pause. “...And I love you too. More than I know how to say. That is why it hurts so much to know when you are suffering.”

“I know.” Douxie’s hand squeezed hers one more time, and Archie shifted his head to rest across her shoulders.

Come what may, they had to stay together. That was what it meant to be a pod. And though the thought of the journey ahead of them was daunting, it was made easier by the knowledge that they would undertake it together. And that at the end of it, the last missing part of their family was waiting for them. The pod would be whole again at last, safe in a secret haven for all displaced magical creatures.

A haven that would, in another few centuries, come to be known as Arcadia Oaks, California.

Hope you enjoyed, Willow! Thanks for reading. ✨

[bunkernine]

am i the only one who feels like Coach Hedge was almost completely unnecessary? Like, not to come on your blog and complain but I feel you would understand or be able explain why this angry war goat with zero personality traits was Rick's satyr of choice

Coach plays pretty well to say that not all nature spirits are calm or timid the way Grover initially was, plus he momentarily peeks into the life of an older satyr, with his whole “i was sent to wilderness because the council saw me fuck up and i’m getting old”.... But my whole issue is that most of the characters could’ve improved if Riordan just wrote a side story for them. Like, maybe he’s searching for Leo with Jason and Piper because those three are the kids he’s supposed to be protecting, and he has to act more serious to comfort those two, while  dealing with fucking up again, but LOL he’s also wearing a baby carrier and Chuck is teething. like... short stories really could make a character and build relationships that don’t have time in the main series but instead we got... nachoes. 

Anyway, here’s what Coach Hedge could’ve done (and this is primarily lost trio based as he was their protector but later applies to the rest of the scooby gang):

He could’ve played into the father role for the lost trio. Jason and Leo didn’t grow up with parents and probably could’ve used an actual adult to depend on, while Piper gets the attention she wanted, as well as her having an adult to talk to about her demigod issues 🥰 This works pretty well ESPECIALLY with a milder Millie to balance out Hedge’s roughness and play as a hesitant mothering figure

Found family with the lost trio is very important but like.... Hedge could’ve and should’ve been apart of that, if he explicitly mentioned having empathy bonds with them. After Jason dies in TBM, having Hedge off-handedly say “I’m getting too old for this, it’s too much” or something, would’ve been VERY cool to see, because it shows, A, sign that yes, being a demigod can wear down even the most excited souls, B, there was actually some love shared between them all over the past year, C, how satyrs react to the death of their protected

On the flip side, him on the Argo could’ve show the kids, that not even adults have it figured out and that literally no one has any clue what’s going on, and living longer doesn’t mean you’ll figure it out. And like, the only reason why this doesn’t really work is cause no one paid too much attention to Hedge anyway so... dunno

Could’ve served as a better mentor to the kids. Idk, scene where he trains Piper or teaches her about his dumb healing Gatorade. Probably could’ve did more with Frank, but that seemed a little last minute anyway. hazel probably could’ve had some fun asking about horses and nature and horses and magic and horses and horses and hor-

In all honesty, Hedge could’ve been left home at CHB, and there could’ve been points where the Lost Trio IM’d him 🤔 like that scene in HoH where they figure out that the prophecy was for them, could’ve just had Hedge figuring it out with them. At the somber moment, when they realize someone is probably going to die, Hedge interrupts, a little pale in the face, with some “YEAH BUT NOT IF I KILL GAEA FIRST” and then they slowly laugh, Piper meaningful thanking him with her eyes or some shit i dunno, but like, something about those three feeling frustrated and calling back Hedge to talk, and while he’s totally useless, it always made them feel better

So.... I also typed that last point knowing that in TLH, literally every time Hedge speaks, Jason gets annoyed, and it’s the funniest thing ever. Hedge would say something, and Jason would go 😐 and say the equivalent of “That’s Great, Gleeson.” I just think that’s a funny dynamic considering it’s Jason who doesn’t have much of a problem with people but DAMN when Coach speaks, he’s all 😐🙂😐

I forgot what this ask was saying, but yeah, it’s probably just to contrast Grover, but like, idk Hedge could’ve been interesting... That short story would be hella cool too, cause while they’re sad about losing their friend, he looks down at his baby and thinks about losing Chuck and Mellie, and how Hedge felt Leo die cause of a link, and he just says something like  “have I ever told you guys how I ended up at Wilderness? The real story.” .... something like that, you know?

[mariamermaid]

Savage

Luke Castellan x Fem Reader

Words: 7.3k

Summary: Born as a child from the God Janus and a young witch, you had a good life hidden away from all the stress, demigods have usually to face. However, when your mother decides to go through a longer trip in Asia, in order to ban a demon, you´re shipped to the half-blood camp.

A/N: Inspired by the song “Savage” by Bahari. I actually wanted to write this for so loongg, however I´m not too familiar with the Percy Jackson fandom, so no judging please ;)

Warnings: Smoking, drinking, implied smut

 ———–

The sun was already rising, you had awoken late, in the early afternoon. The apartment laid in silence, but you immediately knew that something was wrong. You felt the vibrations, the breath of another being here. Not wasting any time, you jumped out of your bed and twirled to get dressed. Then trying to be as quiet as possible, you walked down the stairs. However, when you saw Chiron, the obnoxious leader of the half-blood camp, you relaxed again. He wasn´t a threat to you.

“What are you doing here? Shouldn´t you knock before entering?” He was sat at the table in the dinning area, which was separated from the kitchen by a thin wall with a large window. The kitchen counter was half filled by plants and glass bottles of potions. Long plants hung from the ceiling and a huge shelf held various spices and ingredients for potions and spells. He sat there peacefully, waiting for your arrival.

He was cloaked by his normal centaur figure, sitting there as a normal looking man. You felt the crying from the crystal around his neck that tried so hard to disguise him. A rather sad attempt at modern magick.

“Y/n, so nice to see you again.” You rolled your eyes at his empty greeting. “I asked you a question.”

“A real pleasure.” He repeated and eyed you through the open window to the kitchen area, where you just made a tea. “I´m gonna ask you one more time; what do you want? Don´t test my patience.” You growled and threw a mad look at him while continuing to heat the water. “The last time I´ve seen you, you were just a little girl.” The spoon you had just fetched, fell to the ground. You didn´t want to hear his well thought speech and a wind began to play. The kettle of the water began to whistle as strands of your hair flew back and several knives from the kitchen counter, started lifting off the ground as well. They hovered in the air in front of Chiron, who tried his best to act not too surprised. You raised your eyebrow at him, waiting. He tried his best to hide his surprise, but your powers outstood everything he had seen before. No wonder it had taken so long to find you…

“Your mother isn´t here.”

“She´ll be back soon.”

“You´re not an adult, you know what that means? In order to ensure your protection, we need to bring you to the camp.”

The knives slowly flew back and the spoon from the ground came into your fingers again. “I don´t need your protection.” Finally, he stood up and came to the counter. You had only seen him a few times as a child, but his movement didn´t seem as fluent. He wasn´t used to the human body. “I know, but this isn´t my decision. The gods have decided so, you´re father wants you there, at least until your birthday.”

“My father doesn´t know what´s best for me, he doesn´t know me.” You sighed and sipped from your tea. “And I don´t need him, I´m not one of your fosterlings, I don´t need his or your recognition.”

***

It wasn´t your decision and you knew, you just couldn´t take the anger from the gods on you.

“I think you´ll like it here, maybe you even make some friends.” Chiron explained as he led you through the gates to the camp. The tall trees offered protection and you felt the invisible wall as you entered. Chiron´s figure appeared back to his centaur and he grew above you. He seemed to relax as well now. You knew it wouldn´t be too hard to sneak away, the wall protection spell was simple to break. But even you had to admit, the nature was indeed beautiful. You lived with your mother in an apartment in New York, but you were a witch, the nature was just a part of you. But all you could do now was hope that the next weeks would pass quickly.

“This is Percy, son of Poseidon, he´ll show you around. Percy was your age and even you had heard a few stories from his adventures, and he held out his hand. You took it rather pressured to do so. He greeted you and smiled brightly. He was a little taller than you, not much with dark brown hair and greenish eyes. He starred at you, then blinked until he finally greeted you. “Hi, I´m Percy.” You only nodded; he knew your name anyway. Chiron exchanged looks with Percy, you knew what they meant; keep an eye on her. But Percy was way too focused on admiring you. You always had a certain presence, blessed by witches and cursed by gods. You were an usual companion as a half god, you didn´t meet their standards, you completely crushed them.

I am the sun

You know you need me

You make it burn

“So, I heard you´re the daughter of Janus?” Percy had unsuccessfully tried to make some small talk and you had always given a bored answer, however he was determined not to give up. The son of Poseidon was ambitious, even you had to admit, but for your taste he was too devoted to the gods liking. You nodded silently as you walked through the different cabins in the camp. “I actually don´t know much about him.” “He´s not an active member of the Olympic.” You explained shrugging. “What does he do again?” You couldn´t overhear Percy´s slight arrogance. With a father as famous as his, he had a clear reputation. “He´s the good of doors, beginnings, transitions and time.” “And do you have siblings?” “Not that I know of.” Percy chuckled. “I don´t want to bum you, but you probably have a sibling somewhere.” He paused to wait for an action, but you kept quiet. “I have a brother myself, didn´t know about him as well.” “Tyson, I know.” Percy furrowed his brows. “You know, how?” “I´ve met him in a bar.” Percy stopped so abrupt, you almost laughed. “What?”

You grinned devilishly; they were all so innocent to you. “Nothing special, we just shared a beer while I waited for a vampire friend of mine.” “You have a vampire friend?!” Now even Percy sounded truly surprised. They were all advised to keep away from any other mythological creatures. “I wouldn´t necessarily call him a friend; he´s more an associate.”

It was your time to smile innocently at him and fluttered your eyelashes, then you shook your head, clearly amused by his confusion. You were so different from the other half gods, so independent and self-assure. Usually when people joined the camp, they are all unsure of who they are and where they´re from.

You sighed and pulled out a metal container of cigarettes. “You don´t mind, do you?”

“That kills you, you know that?”

You leaned forward as you light your cigarette, then took a puff before whispering in his ear. “This place kills me.”

If you take too much

Don´t get addicted

 You had been at the camp for almost two days, it was dead boring. You pleased to eat alone, usually you took the food and left the cabin to ate at the lake. Many tried to approach you at first, but after some hard rejections, they all slowly left you alone. Annabeth still tried to talk you into training with her, you only smiled and shook your head. It was on your third day, when you peacefully read a book and several boys started sword fighting right in front of you. The arena had been quiet, so you had assumed to have some peace. You were wrong.

Percy tagged along with them and he waved at you, you only smiled politely and then concentrated back on your book. “History of the salem witches, from covens and cults.”

“You know they´re doing this for you?” You almost jumped at the sudden voice from behind you, it was a new voice. You turned to find a young, blonde man behind you. He had high cheekbones and icy blue eyes. “Too bad I won´t give them attention.”

He nodded. “Too bad.”

You grew interested and the feeling of knowing him crept on you. But you didn´t ask.

“Why don´t you train with them?”

“It´s boring to always win.” You let out a rough chuckle. “Sounds cocky.”

“If you say so.” He stood up from the rows of benches and left the arena, you watched him cautiously. When you turned back, Percy made his way to you.

“What did he say to you?” He sounded harsh and truly worried.

“Who is he?” Percy let out a nervous laugh. “That´s Luke, Luke Castellan.”

“Son of Hermes? That explains a lot.” You exclaimed and continued to stare at the direction, he had just disappeared.  “He´s was granted asylum here.” Percy further exclaimed, he seemed very worried. But you barely listened until he grabbed your wrist. “Y/n, you might not be a fan of this camp, but stay away from him, he´s bad.”

 ´Cause I´m gonna fade you like a rush

Is that blood on me or blush?

So what?

 The half-blood camp had the tradition to have bonfires every few weeks. It was something everyone looked forward to and even you decided to join. Well, Annabeth talked you in to it. She approached you after the lunch that day. “Hey Y/n!” She greeted you as she caught up to you. “Do you know what you´re wearing tonight?” You shrugged. “Is there some kind of dress code?” Annabeth shook her head, but then she laughed. “No, but everyone likes to dress up a little, you know?” “What do you wear then?” You asked more curiously now, she shrugged. It was your time to laugh and your head fell back. “Don´t worry, I think I´ll find something for us!”

About two hours later, your entire cabin was a mess. Clothes, jewelry and make laid all around. Annabeth had wondered, but the more you pulled out of your awfully small suitcase, the more she realized that it was a spell. “You seriously took your entire closet with you, didn´t you?” She asked grinning. “Not the entire one, just the important stuff.” You added, but then erupted in laughter.

Annabeth wore a top with ruffles and a high waisted skirt, while you had settled on a black dress. “Can I just say, your dress screams witchy”, she laughed and you eyed yourself in the mirror. “Well I am a witch, aren´t I?” You grinned. “You don´t look bad yourself.” Annabeth blushed, but then nodded agreeing. “I have to warn you by the way.” You raised an eyebrow and checked your makeup on more time. “Grover usually spicks the punchbowl.” You laughed. “Does Chiron know?”

Annabeth shook her head. “As much as he tries to protect us, he stays away from the bonfires. However, I´m pretty sure that Dionysos knows, he just likes partying too much.”

“If that´s what you call a party, we have to go out in New York.” You added sounding overly dramatic. Annabeth sighed. “I wish we could.”

You sighed as well and sat down on the bed next to her. “Why can´t we?”

“We´re not allowed to leave the camp without permission.” “But you snuck out, didn´t you? With Percy when the lighting was stolen, right?” Annabeth nodded but she seemed bummed. “Yes, but we had no other choice. It was important.” You grew annoyed and jumped off the bed again. “And that´s the reason why my mother didn´t want me to come her!” Annabeth was surprised by your sudden outburst, but you continued. “You all get trained her, but if it comes down to the real world, and don´t take this personal, you are all hopelessly lost. You get taught that it´s so important because you´re parents are these gods, but why should they define you? Hate to say it, but most gods are real assholes!” Annabeth started laughing again. “I know!” She exclaimed and you huffed. “But don´t worry, next week we´ll sneak out and go clubbing!”

She let out an excited scream and grabbed your arms. “You can do that?” “I´m a witch, aren´t I?”

When you arrived at the bonfire party, you both looked stunning. The summer nights were gone and you both wore jackets that featured your outfits. You noticed Percy eyeing you and Annabeth from afar and nudged her side. “You and Percy?” You asked her whispering, but she avoided your glance and was greeted by a few other girls from the camp. You on the other hand made your way to the wooden table where the punchbowl and some snacks were placed. Behind the table waited Percy and Grover.

“Hello Boys”, you greeted them and winked at Grover. “Grover, you wouldn´t mind to pour me some of your famous bowl, would you?” Grover almost stepped over his own feet in order to bring you the cup and you grinned satisfied with your entrance. “You look amazing”, Percy added now as well. You smiled, this time more genuine. “Thanks.”

A few loud screams interrupted your eye contact and the three of you watched as a few guys started sword fighting again. You knew it was you, who drove them crazy. Well, a small bottle of your favorite perfume Odeur d´amour  also helped, one of the oldest witch tricks of them all.

“I could win, if I wanted”, Grover suddenly added and you noticed that he must have had a few cups for now. “Then why don´t you show me?” You asked sweetly and Grover didn´t wait for you to ask a second time. With enthusiastic jumps he made his way to the crowd. You chuckled and drowned the cup in a go, just to turn back to Percy. “You should join him.”

“I know that you´re not interested in those guys.”

“I wasn´t talking about me”, you said and pointed into Annabeth´s direction. “She likes you; I can tell.” Percy shrugged. “We had a few rough times.” He didn´t seem convinced. You let out a laugh. “You don´t dress like that for no reason.” Then you leaned closer to his ear.  “Especially not under the dress.”

Yes, you had fun. You had fun seeing how Percy uncontrollably blushed. You had fun seeing those boys fight over something, they could never have. You had fun drowning your second cup in one go. You had fun letting control…

After at least four cups, or had it been five? You strolled through the crowd that had slowly scattered. You greeted a few people, chatted with Annabeth and a few other girls. It felt nice, alcohol was your best friend in building new relationships, everybody just relaxed. When Grover, he had way too many cups at this point, decided to pull out a rather old DJ stand and many went to dance, you watched them from afar and you took out your cigarettes. You just searched for a lighter in your pockets, as a small fire suddenly glowed in front of your face. Following the hand, that was holding the silver lighter and you found your eyes travelling to Luke´s face. He was slightly grinning. “Can I have one as well?” You could only nod as you held a cup in one hand and pulled out the cigarettes with the other. Luke didn´t seem to mind, took one and lit it up himself.

“I wondered if you´re gonna be here”, he said after he had taken a puff. You looked up to him, raising an eyebrow. “Why not?” “It´s not your kind of scene.” You couldn´t help but let out a laugh. “You´re right, it´s not.” You took another sip and held the cup to Luke, without even thinking. He shook his head. “Not my kind of drink.” “What do you drink then?”

He pulled out a flask and you let out another laugh and shook your head. “Unbelievable”, you muttered but then continued to grin. He held the flask to you, but you shook your head. Whatever it was, it had a high percentage. But Luke didn´t take no for an answer and poured some into your cup. “You know they warned me about you”, you rolled your eyes, but Luke saw the fire in your eyes burning. You weren´t afraid of him, you were intrigued.

“And yet you´re here with me.”

You know I´m not a saint

But I can make you pray

So get down on your knees

 The flask was emptied too fast and somehow, you were convinced to leave the party. Annabeth had talked you into dancing, which turned out to be more fun than expected. You were blushing from the heat of the fire and the liquor burning in your soul, but when you turned, you caught an eye of Luke watching you. He didn´t stop smirking when making eye contact with you and neither did you. It was in this moment, where you decided to leave. You quickly and rather sloppily said your goodbyes, and hurried back to your cabin.

Something was telling you, that you were being followed. You weren´t wrong. When you reached the stairs that led to the entrance, he had caught up. You found yourself with your back against the wooden door, Luke´s arm pressing above you, his other hand on your hip. He was leaning down, only inches away from your lips and you felt his hot breath on your face. He smelled like whisky and cigarettes and expensive cologne. “Leaving so early?” He asked quietly. You knew you had both drunken a good amount and something in your body should scream to stop, but you didn´t.

“Who said the party was over?”

His lips crashed onto yours and you both leaned into the kiss, quickly deepening the kiss. Your hands travelled up to his neck and played with his golden strands of hair, while his hand grabbed your hips, tighter and more craving. After several minutes, you barely realized it, he had stolen the key to your cabin from the pocket of your jacket and fumbled with the lock. You felt how he slowed down, but you continued, your kisses running down his neck and you felt how Luke smiled. The door finally unlocked and his hands were quickly around your waist again. You wanted to stumbled backwards into the dark room, but Luke didn´t let you. His hands grabbed your butt and lifted you off the ground, while your legs hugged around his waist. You shrieked surprised, but it was his time to kiss your neck. You knew that there would be marks tomorrow…

He carried you into the darkness of the room and kicked the door closed with his foot. You landed on the bed and Luke immediately leaned over you, hastily taking off his leather jacket. In the meantime, you had kicked off your shoes, which loudly landed on the floor. He kneeled on top of you, while beginning to make out again. His hand caressed up your leg, until it reached the top of your skirt again. You nodded approving and lifted your hips, so he could help undress you. The rest of the clothing quickly followed…

Give me a reason I should stay

Trapped inside this madness

I know you wanna have this

So I can take advantage

Savage, Savage

 It was just after 5am. when you awoke from your peaceful sleep. Legs tangled together with Luke you sat up in the bed, the sheets still covering your bare body. You yawned and cursed the early morning hours, sadly you didn´t have a choice. You let your feet hang over the bed, your toes brushing against the cold floor. Luke awoke as well and groaned.

“What´s the time? Is the sun even up?” You laughed; your voice sounded rough from the alcohol. “It hasn´t risen yet.”

His arm tried to pull you back, but you didn´t let it happen. Then you left the bed to pick a few dessous from your closet, while throwing over a thin robe. Luke watched you in the mere light.

“Where are you going?” “I need to get some things done and the day, where everybody is inexcusable tired and hungover, is the best time to go.” He rose from the bed and you saw the bitter taste of a headache on his face. “You´re leaving the camp?”

You turned to finally face him again, your face unreadable to him. “Yes, and you´ll be leaving this cabin and no one will see you.” Sighing, you sat down on the edge of the bed, your clothes ready in your arms. Your voice sounded monotone in the room.

“Luke, this was fun, but we´re living in different worlds… In a few weeks, I´ll be gone, don´t get used to me.”

Only half an hour later, you knocked at Annabeth´s door. After the third time knocking, she finally opened. Smeared make up in her face and her clothes from the day before. Her eyes blinked irritated. “Y/n.. What…”

“Get dressed, we´re leaving in 15.”

She was punctual, while you waited outside. It didn´t help that you smelled Percy´s cheap perfume from there.

“Couldn´t this wait?” Annabeth asked tiredly, while the two of you made your way through the woods.

“Look, everybody is gonna sleep late today, no one will even train or do anything, it´s the best time to sneak out!” You explained yet again. “How´s Percy by the way? Slept well?” You changed the topic and watched how the girl next to you blushed in a deep shade of red.

“We… We didn´t…” You let out a laugh and punched her shoulder. “I only asked if you slept well, not how your entire night went!” She joined in your laughter, still blushing. But then her forehead wrinkled. “You disappeared quite early, didn´t you?” You couldn´t help but grin.

“Well… Maybe I had a better night…” “WHAT?!” You punched her shoulder again, this time harder to tone her down. “Shut it!” You whispered. “Or do you want the entire camp to wake up and tell them who I´ve slept with?!”

She linked her arm with yours and pulled you closer. “Who?”

“No”, you answered stubborn. “What? You give me hints like that and won´t even tell me?! Are you for real?!” You couldn´t help but giggle. “Okay, but you have to promise, to not tell anybody. Annabeth, nobody!”

“Omg is it Grover?” You laughed and snapped your fingers at her head.

“No, it´s not Grover!”, You paused and she waited. “It´s Luke.”

“WHAT!”

“ANNABETH!” You hushed her. Luckily, you had just reached the border of the camp and you pushed your hand over her mouth. “Calm down! It wasn´t anything special, no strings attached!”

“But-“ “No but! It´s my decision and now let me concentrate, anyway we´ll get caught.”

You unlinked your arm with hers and pulled out a mirror from your purse and laid it right under the border. You held your hands up in the air.

“Mirror Mirror, may you never fail to fight,

Grant me pass through hidden night.

Open up a gateway of protection,

Let me travel in your connection.”

Annabeth now watched as the border began to slightly crumble, until a hole was ripped open. You nodded and quickly, she jumped through, while you followed. Then you pulled away the mirror and glanced back at her admiring eyes. “Now all we gotta is do is open the gateway again, if we want to enter”, you explained shrugging. Annabeth shook her head. “Unbelievable.”

You put the mirror back in your awfully small looking purse, which obviously matched your outfit perfectly. Then you pulled another Item and Annabeth gasped yet again.  “Is that a broom?!”

It had taken you about 45 minutes, and then you continually started running from one shop to the other. Annabeth began to saw parts of the city, she didn´t even dream about. Between several witch shops with potion supplies and spell books, you found yourself in many clothing stores as well. It was then over lunch, which you desperately starved for, when Annabeth tried to approach a certain topic again.

“Y/n, I know you don´t want to hear this; you have been warned after all, but there is something you should know…” She added quietly and watched, as you rolled your eyes. “What is it then?”

“In a few weeks, there will be a trial for him.” You swallowed and stopped eating. “A trial?” Annabeth nodded again and laid down the cutlery in her hands. “I don´t know anything for sure, but Chiron will have a trial for him. I only know for sure that he and Dionysos will be attending- I also heard that even some of the gods are supposed to be attending.” You leaned forward. “What do you think is gonna happen?” She shrugged. “I have no idea.” You swallowed again, letting your mind run crazy with the new given information. “Do you think they´ll sentence him to…” You didn´t finish and neither did Annabeth. Your appetite was gone now.

It had taken you a few days, but somehow you were able to push all worries away. When you walked through the woods that day, you were alarmed by an unsettling battle cry. You had done so well in avoiding Percy and foremost Luke, but destiny had decided differently that day. Even after telling Annabeth, you were sure that nobody knew about you and Luke. He had lost his friends and you didn´t make enough. Currently there was this kind of training, where they were separated in two groups and to your surprise, even Luke participated. You thought it was stupid, just like so many things, but then Luke caught your eye. Oh, how you wanted to look away, but when your eyes look, you couldn´t. He started at you, directly and boldly, until his shield was attacked by a sword. Percy glared angrily at him, the reason for the fight had just changed. “Stay away from her”, he growled and Luke let an unimpressed hum. “Why do you care?” After Percy threw a few punches at him, which Luke riposted, Luke was still grinning. Percy had the deep urge to break his teeth until he couldn´t grin anymore. “What about you and Annabeth?”

He didn´t know when to stop and Percy continued attacking. “Don´t think she´s actually interested in you!” He muttered to Luke, who furrowed his eyebrows. “She´s bored, we both know that.”

“Then why would you care?” Percy grunted when Luke threw him back, but got quickly back on his feet. “I care because she is one of us, no matter what and we´ll stand together in this camp! And YOU betrayed us!” Percy was able to disarm him and even though you hadn´t heard their conversation, you felt their agony. Luke was down, barely able to crawl backwards, but Percy didn´t seem to be interested in him anymore. He had shown his point and Luke laid in the dirt; you had seen who won. “Stay away from her.”

Much against Percy´s anticipation, Luke heard a knock in his door. It wasn´t hard for you to find his cabin, away from the rest, darker, lonelier. His eyes slightly widened when seeing you. He had a cut at his lip and a bruised eye. You grinned. “Hey, may I come in?”

He couldn´t say no and let you enter. He had a king-sized bed; all the windows were closed and the only light from outside came through the wooden cracks. A large desk was taking up most of the space with a cozy looking swivel chair in front of it. Three computer desktops were placed on it, several gaming machines and a chaos of cable going behind the desk. A blue screen saver ran on the screens and gave the entire room a mysterious shining light. “I saw how Percy beat your ass today.” He wasn´t in the mood to be mocked and already wanted to open the door again, when you pulled out a glass container. “What´s that?” “Medicine?”

“You brought me medicine?” He sounded even more surprised than he actually was, while you nodded. “Sit down you ordered and he took place in the only chair. You slightly leaned against the desk as you took a closer look at his eye. “Within a maximum of two days, it should be completely gone”, you explained and started applying the crème, which smelled like eucalyptus and other herbs. In the meantime, he watched you closely. Every move you made, every blink. You realized the sudden closeness and your fingers stopped moving, until he took his hand in yours. “Luke, remember what I said?” You asked whispering, sounding unsure. He nodded slightly, his eyes moving down to your lips. “You said it was fun.”

When you touch me you take me to heaven

When you hold me

My body is a weapon

 It was all it took; a simple push and suddenly you found yourself stripped naked in his bed. You laid on your side, your head on his chest. “Ok, I know I said it was fun, but damn!” He chuckled and started leaning down again. “How about a round two then?” You quickly turned away and immediately started searching for your clothes again. “Sorry Luke, but I’m awaiting a phone call within 10 minutes from now, next time!” You explained hastily, but when you finally reached the door again, you looked back at him. He was widely smiling. “Until next time.”

If you think you can save me

Break me down and take me

Here´s your chance to do some damage

Savage

 To your absolute denial, Luke and you met several times from this day on. As always it never took much to be the last straw. It simply was enough, when you saw him eyeing you from afar while eating dinner. You always gave each other a little hint and suddenly found yourself in each other arms again. It was living at the edge.

Annabeth didn´t know for sure, but she noticed your missing and guessed right, after considering your and Luke´s growing history. Chiron had one time almost caught you in the kitchen, it was Luke´s luck that you had perfect divination skills. However, the weeks had passed and when you awoke that morning, you knew something was different. Not being able pin point it just yet, you groaned as leaving the bed. It was early, as so often when you awoke even though every cell in your body screamed for sleep. It wasn´t long after you had gotten dressed when a knock on your door echoed. Your first thought was Luke, but he liked to sleep in and never had the idea to do anything at this god forbidden time. To your surprise, it was Chiron. You eyed him suspiciously, but he smiled generously like he did so often. “I would like to talk to you, do you have time?”

You walked next to him as making your way near the lake. “Your time here soon will be over”, Chiron started and you let out a laugh. “Be honest Y/n, it´s not as bad as it seems, is it?” After thinking for a while, you shook your head. “No, it´s not. But-“

“But it´s not your home, you didn´t need this camp, I know you never did.” Chiron continued.

“Trust me, when I saw you after all these years, I saw a young, independent woman and she was strong enough to take care of herself. I was so stunned by you and each day with you here, held a surprise. Your spell when sneaking out with Annabeth is just one of many examples”, he added and you couldn´t help but blush. “You noticed?” He grinned. “I almost didn´t. You helped Percy and Grover in the kitchen and you helped many girls in the camp with their confidence, supplying them with simply accessories. I know it wasn´t much to you, but it made a difference.”

He paused and you both slowly came to a stop. “I want to talk to you about Luke.”

You couldn´t help but swallow, but Chiron seemed nervous as well. “I don´t what´s going on between you and him, all I know, is that I saw the way he looked at you.”

You shook your head in denial, but Chiron didn´t let you speak. “All Luke ever wanted was acceptance, acceptance neither I nor this camp could offer. Until you came and you taught him; only he needed to accept himself, not me, not the camp, not his father.” Chiron sighed, you knew it wasn´t easy for him as well. “I guess you know about his trials coming up and I have a proposal to make…”

I am the tide

I know you´re drowning

You´re on the ride

 You were packing your belongings and you had to be honest, you were indeed a little sad. You knew that the nature around the camp would be dearly missed by you, the high tree tops, the cold mornings where fog crawled over the lake and maybe even your fellow creatures. Just maybe.

You were so focused on packing and organizing your things, you overheard the knock. Just when you heard someone clearing his throat, you jumped in surprise. “God Luke!”

He chuckled, but you saw sorrow in his eyes, feeling sympathy coming up. “You´re packing?” He asked confused, but it sounded like a statement. It seemed like he had just found out. You nodded compelled, ignoring his stare. “Why didn´t you tell me?” He asked further trying to get you to look at him, but you continued to avoid his eyes. “Annabeth told me”, he added and you shrugged. “Yeah, my birthday is this night, a minute after midnight.” He stepped next to you and grabbed your wrist, stopping you from packing. He didn´t say anything, just starred at you with his piercing eyes, asking for answers. But you pulled your hand back and removed yourself from his closeness. You felt the heat growing in face and hoped that Luke didn´t see the blushing.

“I though you´d stay for my trials.”

“Why? Do you think they´ll let you go?”

It stung; you saw it in his face. The comment wasn´t necessary, it had slipped from your lips and you regretted it. But there was no going back. “I didn´t-“

“No, it´s fine!” He took a few steps and threw his hands in the air. “Why would you?!” He grew angrier and his voice became louder. “Why would anyone? No one believes in me anyway.” He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. Silence settled between you and with your mouth opened, you waited for words to come out. But nothing came.

“I know what we said; no strings, no feelings, but-“, he turned back and forth, just to walk closer to you again. “I didn´t know this would happen, but I like you, I really like you.” Luke became quieter with each word and it must´ve been hard for him. And yet, you couldn´t do anything else but shook your head. “Sorry Luke, I informed you about the precepts, I literally warned you. Not my fault.”

You knew how it sounded; cold and harsh. It broke your heart how he blinked at you and you noticed how he was shaking. The sudden closeness was lost and he took a few steps, looking at the ground now. “Is that all you have to say to me?” He asked whispering.

“Don´t let this get to you, focus on your trials. This isn´t about you and me, it´s about you and only you.”

Be careful who you trust

Don´t get a entwisted

´Cause I could into us

Or I could leave just because

Because

 They were all there; Chiron, Dionysus, Hermes, Zeus Justizia and a fifth man, Luke didn´t know him. They were all seated at a long wooden table, while he was seated on a simple chair in front of him. He dreaded this moment, as cool as he might act, he was truly nervous. He had barely slept, trying to forget the nervousness, the burden this moment was holding against him, you…

He had dreamed of you; you were together in New York, you wore a flowing summer dress and laughed with him. But when he tried to reach out for you, you had disappeared. Somehow he managed to call back your word in his mind. Don´t let this get to you, focus on your trials. This isn´t about you and me, it´s about you and only you. Luke knew you were right, but admitting it was too much.

While Chiron read out the terrible things he had done, he eyed the fifth man closer. He wore a black suit with silver buttons. He wore slightly wavy hair, a few strands falling over his facial features. He had a slightly crocked nose and dark, green eyes. Somehow, Luke noticed, he had a larger head than the rest. But maybe he just imagined that. When coming to a slowly, but surely end of the list, he pulled out a silver shinning pocket watch, raising his eyebrow at the time. Hermes, who sat right next to him, cleared his throat in order to admonish him. Luke almost rolled his eyes at his father´s implicit manner, but decided against it. “Janus”, he warned him quietly and look couldn´t help but let his eyes widen. Janus, God of Doorways, Transition and Time. He was your father.

Luke swallowed, all the nervousness he had pushed away, came rushing back.

“Luke, I´m gonna let you talk now, what do you have to say?” Chiron explained and all their eyes laid thickly on him.

“I… There´s a lot I want to say, but I´ll keep it to the important details.” He struggled talking, but tried to remain calm. At least on the outside. “I know that the things I´ve done were wrong, I´ve never been so aware of this. I was a bitter teenager and it´s inexcusable and I´m still sorry. Father” he paused and looked at him. “This isn´t your fault, I don´t think anyone but me is to blame, even though I made it look that way. Just in the passing weeks I learned how important it is to stay true to yourself, but I never knew myself. I know, I have no right to ask for any favors, all I can do is beg for a second chance.” Luke was shaking and he felt the edge of tears in his eyes. It was all up to him.

“I will accept your verdict no matter what. Just know, even though it´s a hard journey, I´ll try to change for better.” He decided to rise from the chair, he said everything he wanted. “Thank you for listening.”

You know I´m not a saint

But I can make you pray

So get down on your knees

Give me a reason I should stay

Trapped inside this madness

I know you wanna have this

So I can take advantage

Savage

Savage

 Two hours, that´s how long Luke waited outside the room while hearing them discuss inside. Dionysus had the duty to watch him, while they waited. Sometimes things got heated and their loud voices echoed through the cabin, sometimes it was so quiet, all he could hear was his own heartbeat. To his surprise, it wasn´t Chiron who called him in, it was Janus. He opened the door and nodded at him, but when Luke followed him and he turned to lead the way back, he saw it. Janus second face. It was at the back of his head and look similar to the front one, the same sharp features, the same lips and nose. But the eyes were brown instead of green. While he made his way back to his chair behind the long table, his second face didn´t leave Luke´s body. And just before he sat down again, he winked at Luke. Luke wasn´t sure how to interpret; was it a good or bad sign? Janus seemed calm, but he saw the twisted thoughts lying behind his forehead. He wasn´t like Zeus, a bright shining god, a perfectly representing picture. He was dark, mysterious and withdrawn.

“As you might imagine, this wasn´t an easy verdict to make”, Chiron started explaining. “Before your trial we asked several witnesses about you, which didn´t make it easier. But it gave us a picture. Not about your actions, but about you.” He paused and eyed the men, the gods with him. “After all we decided to put it up to a vote.”

The silence that followed only lasted seconds, but it felt like eternity to Luke.

“In the end, it stood three to two”, Luke waited and looking back, he was sure Chiron did it as a last punishment. “In your favor.”

He couldn´t help but jumped off his seat. But Zeus ordered him back. “We´re not finished.” He grunted and Luke knew he voted against him. But he sat back down. “We´ll let you go, you free to go wherever you like. However-“, Chiron took the word back. “They will be somebody at your side. Watching you all day, every day. After a time, that we decided in private, we´ll have another trial to talk about your journey then.” “I get a babysitter who watches me 24/7?” Luke asked somewhat surprised, but Janus nodded. “We decided to give you a second chance, but in the eyes of somebody who will give us daily updates. You will listen to your operating supervisor, otherwise you´ll immediately receive by far worse punishments.”

Luke nodded at him, thankful and couldn´t help but walk to his father, who sat at the very end of the table. To even his surprise, Luke hugged him tightly.

When you touch me you take me to heaven

When you hold me

My body is a weapon

 Hermes opened a portal and they ended up in a alley in New York. He turned to Luke. “From here, I have to leave.” He put a hand on Luke´s shoulder. “Promise me, try everything, be the man I saw in you.” Luke nodded and hugged him once again. “Your supervisor will wait for you.” Hermes added as they parted. He turned back to leave, but Luke held his arm. “Dad? Can you thank Janus from me?” Hermes nodded silently smiling.

“See you soon, Son.”

He vanished and after he was gone, Luke turned towards the large street. The light was shining bright and even though the wind was rushing through the treetops of Central Park, Luke felt a positive wave hitting his body. He stepped out the alley and searched the people, hurrying past him to get somewhere. Across the street he saw the opened gates to Central Park, kids were running inside it, followed by mothers and their strollers.

“It´s lovely weather, isn´t it?”

He jumped at the sudden voice and his eyes fell to the bench against the building on his left.

And there you sat, a caramel trench coat hugging your body, wearing a red lipstick and your hair braided in a lose style. You stood up and stepped next to him.

“Surprised to see me?” Luke couldn´t help but smile, and it felt like he would never stop smiling. “They asked for your opinion about me, didn´t they?” You nodded. “I made a deal with Chiron and after a 45-minute preaching, where I told Zeus how old fashioned the ways of parenting and raising were, I basically won. I mean they had no chance.” You laughed and Luke joined you.

“And did you tell them about us?” “Us?” You grinned devilishly. “Oh, I must have forgot that.”

Luke smiled and pulled you close to finally press his lips on yours.

If you think you can save me

Break me down and take me

Here´s your chance to do some damage

Savage

[haec-est-fides]

Filodox’s Trials of Apollo Reactions [Part I]

Welcome to part one of a reflective journey through Trials of Apollo ft. my original ebook annotations! I’ll be your host, 2020!filodox.

For this first episode, we’ll be going back to May 2016, the beginning of it all: The Hidden Oracle.

Annotations for this round are brought to you by 2016!filodox.

Is there anything we should know before we begin, 2016!me?

2016!filodox: I swore on the Styx never to read another Riordan book after he killed Octavian. And yet here we are.

... Alright then! Let’s get started.

But first, a more detailed overview on how this series will work: I will excerpt bits and pieces of the books based on what I highlighted / annotated on my first read. Beneath each quote, I will share what I wrote in the annotation. Below that, I will (occasionally) laugh at my past self, clarify the note, or say how my view has changed.

I encourage questions, comments, and concerns (of which there may be many), so go ahead and use that replies feature if you feel so inclined! However, these are just my opinions and (occasionally) emotional reactions, so no hate pls. <3 (Or, if you do send hate, pls make it funny.)

Now, diving right in with Riordan’s dedication!

To The Muse Calliope. This is long overdue. Please don’t hurt me.

2016!filodox: Hurt him. He didn’t even name the chapters.

As you can see, I had yet to experience Lester’s haiku and was already mad based on the table of contents alone. I went into this series very salty...

I inflicted a plague on the Greeks who besieged Troy.

2016!filodox: At least he did something right. Once.

I was just,,,extremely ready to die on Octavian’s hill. (Though I was a huge Troy / Aeneas stan before all this, just to be clear.)

Is anything sadder than the sound of a god hitting a pile of garbage bags?

2016!filodox: I actually find this particular god crashing into a dumpster quite amusing.

I also blamed Apollo for what happened to Octavian. I think that had a lot to do with how Apollo acted on Delos in Heroes of Olympus, basically disowning Octavian and whining about how some “creature” scammed him? That was bullshit. Apollo needed to own the fact that he blessed Octavian, but he just abandoned him and denied all the blame. TL;DR I had a grudge, okay?

My mind stewed in confusion, but one memory floated to the surface -- the voice of my father, Zeus: YOUR FAULT. YOUR PUNISHMENT.

2016!filodox: Wait, is this bc everyone blames Octavian and therefore Apollo? Bc lol but also no?

*cough* Octavian did nothing wrong 2k16 *cough*

Zeus will reconsider, I told myself. He’s just trying to scare me. Any moment, he will yank me back to Olympus and let me off with a warning.

“Yes...” My voice sounded hollow and desperate. “Yes, that’s it.”

2016!filodox: Apollo is a self centered frat boy, I forgot...but it is slightly...endearing? *narrows eyes*

Ah, how close I was to stanning Lester in the first chapter, when he was at his most “goddy”. You know, I actually made a rule for myself when I started reading Trials of Apollo that I would not under any circumstances stan Apollo. That was a naive goal, because it was never really a danger.

Regardless, Zeus had held me responsible for Octavian’s delusions of grandeur. Zeus seemed to consider egotism a trait the boy had inherited from me. Which is ridiculous. I am much too self-aware to be egotistical.

2016!filodox: I am going to Murder him.

*chef kiss* the hypocrisy ! the lack of self-awareness !

“I just...I assumed -- I hoped this would be taken care of by now.”

“You mean by demigods,” Percy said, “going on a big quest to reclaim the Oracle of Delphi?”

2016!filodox: That sounds like a decent quest, or you know, QUESTING FOR THE SIBYLLINE BOOKS

I’ve always said I can see the future but an inch to the left. Also, I don’t like Ella.

It warmed my heart that my children had the right priorities: their skills, their images, their views on YouTube. Say what you will about gods being absentee parents; our children inherit many of our finest personality traits.

2016!filodox: AND HE’S MAD ABOUT OCTAVIAN?!

I mean ?

Apollo, when Austin and Kayla show ambition: THEY GOT THAT FROM ME <3

Apollo, when Octavian (or Nero, or Caligula) shows ambition: srry i don’t know him ??

He had a weak jawline, an overlarge nose, and a beard that wrapped around his double chin like a helmet strap. His hair was curly and dark like mine, except not as fashionably tousled or luxuriant. His lips curled as if he smelled something unpleasant. Perhaps it was the burning seats of the bus.

2016!filodox: Nero ???

Not quite sure how to feel looking back at this moment. Call out post @ myself for instantly recognizing Nero, when afaik this scene was before we had any hints that Roman emperors were even a plot point? But here’s the thing: I don’t remember why I could recognize him so easily. I don’t remember where 2016!me obtained this ancient Rome knowledge. A mystery.

On another note entirely, did Nero really like,,,astral project into Apollo’s fever dream to address him directly? Because Rhea does. And sometimes Python does. But Nero? Can he do that?

The man laughed as flames licked at his purple sleeves. “You’re not sorry yet, but you will be. Find me the gates. Lead me to the Oracle. I’ll enjoy burning it down!”

2016!filodox: I too enjoy burning things down. # Nero confirmed

My only comment here is “oh you sweet summer child,,,”

Oh. Perhaps some of you are wondering how I felt seeing [Will] with a boyfriend rather than a girlfriend.

2016!filodox: No, actually. I wasn’t wondering. I was plotting how to kill you, them, and quite a few other people. Do you think I could trade you for Octavian?

Oh man, back at it again with the salt. XD

I could only remember my conversations with Octavian, the way he’d turned my head with his flattery and promises. That stupid boy...it was his fault I was here.

A voice whispered in the back of my mind. This time I thought it might be my conscience: Who was the stupid boy? It wasn’t Octavian.

2016!filodox: I can’t really...explain my emotions upon reading this. I’m still not quite okay, but this...it’s bittersweet in a way. I don’t know if this is a poor attempt at a proper closure, the author’s way of beating a dead horse, or just a way to make Apollo seem pitiable. Whatever it is... Octavian was important enough to remain in Apollo’s mortal memory. He somehow made promises to a god and had Apollo wrapped around his finger. And despite being so much like Apollo, the god blames him. Like everyone blames him. But Apollo also realizes, accepts on an infinitesimal scale, that “it wasn’t Octavian”. He wasn’t perfect, but neither is Apollo. Apollo is (at least) subconsciously admitting his own guilt in the whole affair.

...yeah. I will note that this bit isn’t meant to develop Octavian, but rather uses Octavian as a prop to support Apollo’s development? Which is why it still stings. Like thanks, I guess.

“Your judgement in the past has been...questionable. I wonder if you have chosen the right tools for this job. Have you learned from your past mistakes?”

2016!filodox: Nero has made plenty of mistakes to learn from

Love how I just assumed it was Nero back in chapter 10 and went with it, zero hesitation. Also love how I heard Python say Nero has made mistakes and went “oh absolutely”. In fact, here’s something funny in retrospect that will become more and more apparent: I did not like Nero in 2016. Or, at least, I thought I didn’t. There’s something really odd going on here that baffles me, looking back...

“A triumvirate is a ruling council of three,” I said. “At least, that’s what it meant in ancient Rome.”

“Which is interesting,” Rachel said, “because of this next shot.” She tapped her screen. The new photo zoomed in on the building’s penthouse terrace, where three shadowy figures stood talking together....

2016!filodox: Is it bad that I’m smirking? Because it’s getting interesting ~ *clear malicious intent*

Wow, edgy. Triumvirates are just a neat, Roman thing and I stanned.

“The last triumvirate I dealt with included Lepidus, Marc Antony, and my son, the original Octavian. A triumvirate is a very Roman concept...like patriotism, skullduggery, and assassination.”

2016!filodox: THIS IS WHAT I’VE BEEN TRYING TO TELL EVERYONE. MODERN OCTAVIAN IS A VERY GOOD ANCIENT ROMAN. POLITICS, ESPECIALLY SHADY AF POLITICS AND POWERPLAYS, ARE QUINTESSENTIALLY ROMAN. Also, I’d like to note that it’s confirmed, in this universe’s canon, that Augustus was a son of Apollo.

Ohhhh, wait. I think I’d watched the HBO series Rome by 2016, which would at least partially explain my ancient Rome knowledge. (Amazing tv show btw!)

“He heard them talking in Latin.”

“Latin? Were they campers?”

Pete spread his hands. “I--I don’t think so. Paulie described them like they were adults. He said one of them was the leader. The other two addressed him as imperator.”

2016!filodox: !!!! (obligatory 💕)

I was such a simp for Latin in high school. And the Roman Empire. Still am, but hey.

“The Beast is planning some kind of attack on your camp. I don’t know what it is, but it’s going to be big.”

2016!filodox: Runs in the family I guess

The Octavian / Triumvirate parallels are everywhere... 👀

“The emperors made themselves gods. They had their own temples and altars. They encouraged the people to worship them.”

2016!filodox: # deify me

*smacking my past self with a stick* You stop that! Edgy child!

Anyway, a much better point here is like,,,the Imperial cult was huge in the ancient Roman world. Looking at Apollo’s explanation here, why did only the “worst” three emperors get to be immortal? Did famously “good” emperors like Augustus and Marcus Aurelius have the option of becoming minor gods, but they chose Elysium or something? Are there slightly less infamous emperors just hanging around anywhere as minor gods? A lot of Roman emperors live on in human memory is all I’m saying.

“Wait!” Will said as I reached the door. “Who is the Beast? Which emperor are we dealing with?”

“The worst of my descendants.” My fingers dug into the doorframe. “The Christians called him the Beast because he burned them alive. Our enemy is Emperor Nero.”

2016!filodox: I honestly can’t believe it took this long to reveal this? Was anyone surprised?

Nero’s reveal is rather late in the book compared to Commodus, Caligula, and even Tarquin iirc? But it makes sense, being the first book of the series. Also love how 16-year-old me was like “this reveal is silly because everyone, like me, recognizes Nero on sight” and didn’t question that assumption at all.

“Germani.” Instinctively, I moved in front of Meg. The elite imperial bodyguards had been cold-blooded death reapers in ancient Rome. I doubted they’d gotten any sweeter over the centuries.

2016!filodox: BITCH. See? This is why I love Rome. They knew what they were doing.

Ngl, as someone of Germanic heritage, I felt really represented by the Germani, which is hilarious on so many levels.

He tried to compensate for his ugliness with an expensive Italian suit of purple wool, his gray shirt open to display gold chains. His shoes were hand-tooled leather, not the sort of thing to wear while stomping around in an ant pile. Then again, Nero had always had expensive, impractical tastes.

2016!filodox: I don’t exactly like Nero, and actually think he was quite the shitty emperor, but I guess I mildly respect and “like” him on principle (in this book at least).

OH YOU SWEET SUMMER CHILD. I was so convinced that I didn’t actually like Nero, despite all of the lowkey evidence to the contrary? Who hurt you, past me? (Lmao, it was Tacitus, Suetonius, and Cassius Dio.) My working theory is that I was too much of an Emperor Augustus stan at the time to admit liking Nero. It’s hysterical. Look at me equivocating like a champ.

I’d been so proud of my son, the original Octavian, later Caesar Augustus. After his death, his descendants became increasingly arrogant and unstable (which I blamed on their mortal DNA; they certainly didn’t get those qualities from me).

2016!filodox: I’m glad Apollo and I can agree on something. Augustus was amazing and those who came after him...significantly less so.

See! The propaganda really got to me, what can I say?

Nero clasped his hands as if in prayer. “Oh, my. It seems we’ve had a slight miscommunication. You see, Apollo, Meg brought you here, just as I asked her to. Well done, my sweet.”

2016!filodox: This was obvious but I still find it...gods, the only word I can think of is “delicious”

. . .

“The Beast killed my father. This is Nero. He’s -- he’s my stepfather.”

I could not fully grasp this before Nero spread his arms.

“That’s right, my darling,” he said. “And you’ve done a wonderful job. Come to Papa.”

2016!filodox: Okay, but we should have known this since it became apparent her weapons were Roman. Also, oof. Also also, WHY did Riordan feel the need to add that last line? Why?

ASDFGHJKL: I CAN’T

“After the fire, we’ll rebuild,” he said. “It will be glorious!”

2016!filodox: The amount of times I have used this very logic is worrying.

For (some) context, Firelord Ozai is my favorite character from AtLA. <3

The scene might have been funny except that the Germani were now back on their feet, five demigods and a geyser spirit were still tied to highly flammable posts, and Nero still had a box of matches.

2016!filodox: Oh, I find this plenty amusing!

The emperor stared at his empty hand. “Meg...?” His voice was as cold as an icicle.

2016!filodox: The various ways his tone / voice have been described throughout this conversation are just 💕

*looks at camera like I’m on The Office*

Seriously, though. Nero’s voice is like the central descriptive element of his character because he’s so manipulative. It’s really cool and a great use of detail.

[Meg] turned to Nero. “You told me never to lower myself to my enemies’ level.”

“No, indeed.” Nero’s tone had frayed like a weathered rope. “We are better. We are stronger. We will build a glorious new world. But these nonsense-spewing trees stand in our way, Meg. Like any invasive weeds, they must be burned. And the only way to do that is with a true conflagration -- flames stoked by blood.”

2016!filodox: Real 👏🏻 Gods 👏🏻 Require 👏🏻 Blood👏🏻

I was way too enthusiastic about this whole situation, wasn’t I?

Nero grinned. “Good-bye, Apollo. Only eleven more Olympians to go.”

2016!filodox: Wait, shit, WHAT

Having read Tower of Nero, this probably had something to do with Python interfering with the Fates, huh? But does that mean it’s more Python’s plan or Nero’s? If this was Nero’s plan (with his 12 kids literally replacing the Olympians) that’s,,,really fucking bold.

Then I heard the screaming from Camp Half-Blood.

2016!filodox: Music to my ears ~

I’m presenting every edgy detail of my annotations so I have a proper case file when I inevitably have to face the question “On a scale of one to ten, how relatable is Emperor Nero and why should you have realized it’s a ten sooner?”

In a flash of silver light, the camp’s magical barriers collapsed. The Colossus lurched forward and brought his foot down on the dining pavilion, smashing it to rubble like so many children’s blocks.

2016!filodox: Payback! Dear gods, I can’t stop smiling! I’m just like “YES!” I know this will all probably get fixed or whatever but I’M HAVING A MOMENT.

I’ve learned to appreciate the small wins. <3

Percy grabbed one of the crown’s sunray spikes. He sliced it off at the base, then jabbed it into the Colossus’ forehead.

2016!filodox: As much as Nero is FAR from my favorite, I really don’t like defacing ancient (or replicas of ancient) statues and art...

This is where I just start laughing at myself tbh. I was so insistent on not liking Nero. Like, I sound like I’m in denial. Peak equivocation. What happened to that heart emoji a few chapters back? Why did I suddenly make it about *checks notes* ancient art? Updated translation: nooo don’t ruin the Colossus Neronis it’s so sexy aha

Just as the [arrow] reached its apex and was about to fall back to earth, a gust of wind caught it...perhaps Zephyros looking kindly on my pitiful attempt. The arrow sailed into the Colossus’ ear canal and rattled in his head with a clink, clink, clink like a pachinko machine.

2016!filodox: HOW MANY EX MACHINAS IS THIS ?! The dryads, the arrow, Percy, the enchantment, and THIS ?

One of my criticisms of Trials of Apollo in general is just that the stakes are so much higher and Riordan usually solves that problem by having his heroes win on long odds. The chances of them succeeding at like,,,anything they attempt are astronomical, but of course they manage. It’s not surprising but it does get a little tiring.

“Yo, Nico,” Leo called, “please tell me that’s it for the physical abuse.”

“For now.” Nico smiled. “We’re still trying to get in touch with the West Coast. You’ll have a few dozen people out there who will definitely want to hit you.”

2016!filodox: Oh I’d love to hit him. With the flaming, Imperial gold payload of an onager. Preferably WITHOUT the Pontifex Maximus attached to it -- unless of course you mean the false pontifex, Jason Grace.

Leo was the salt in the wound for this one, ngl. He rekindled my undying ire over Octavian’s death. As I said at the beginning of this, I was extremely ready to die on Octavian’s hill after Heroes of Olympus. That sentiment sticks around for a while...

And we can call that a wrap!

Though it may seem like it, my annotations are not, in fact, a compilation of Nero’s greatest hits. There are a lot of scenes of his that I love (naturally) but I didn’t have anything to say about them when I first read the series. Maybe I’ll share those another time.

In any case, I hope you got something out of this ridiculously long post! Until next time! <3

[demigodsanswer]

Post-its and Pregnancy Tests

Here it is. The au of my own headcanons. Everybody lives, adult, post-college AU where Chris, Clarisse, Beckendorf, Silena, Lee, Castor, and Pollux share one four bedroom, two bathroom apartment and have for eight years. 

Read on AO3

~*~*~*~*~

Silena had an eye for detail. It’s what made her such an excellent wedding and party planner. 

And that eye for detail had led her to one very important observation: her best friend was pregnant and didn’t know it yet. 

Admittedly, Clarisse didn’t look pregnant. She jogged next to Silena, clearly at a slower pace than her usual to help Silena keep up, without seeming winded or tired. She didn’t even look like she had gained any weight. But Silena was sure of her conclusions, and it was time to do what she did best. 

Make Clarisse la Rue face facts. 

They were a block from their apartment building when Silena asked them to pause of a second, coming to a rest outside of the drug store. Silena leaned over and rested her hands on her knees, letting her head hang. She watched her breath fog up in the chill November air. 

“Come on, princess, we’re almost home. You can run one more block,” Clarisse said. She had been gracious in agreeing to help Silena get in shape for her July wedding, foregoing her usual evening runs with Chris to run with Silena when she got home from teaching. 

“I know I can,” she protested (although her heavy breathing threatened to betray her). “I want to stop in here,” she gestured to the drug store, “and get some more bridal magazines.” 

Clarisse shrugged, “Alright, I’ll be out here.” 

“You don’t want to come inside and warm up?” 

Clarisse shook her head. “I’d rather freeze than watch you leaf through fifty magazines.” Silena nodded and walked inside. 

She grabbed a few new bridal magazines (for work and personal use), and then a pregnancy test. (The cashier didn’t say anything about her purchase, but she still felt compelled to clarify that she was a wedding planner and also not pregnant.) 

When she walked out, Clarisse was leaning against the wall. “Ready to go?” Silena asked. Clarisse turned to start running home. “Actually,” Silena stopped her, “I was hoping we could just walk. I want to talk to you about something.” 

Clarisse looked at her accusatorially; Silena knew she thought she was just trying to get out of the last bit of running. But Clarisse complied, and they started back to their apartment. 

“So what’s up?” Clarisse asked. 

 “You know how our periods are synchronized?” Silena asked. Eight years ago, when they were just starting to be friends, Clarisse probably would just rolled her eyes and walked away without answering the question. Now, at twenty-four years old and with eight years of Silena experience she didn’t even blink at the question. 

“Yeah, why?” 

“Well, I noticed that three weeks ago I got my period,”

“Good for you,”

Silena ignored the slight condescension and continued. “Well, I got my period, and you didn’t. And it’s been three weeks and you still haven’t gotten yours.” 

“Silena -” Clarisse tried to interupt, but she continued. She pulled the pregnancy test out of her bag as they got closer to their building. 

“Look, I know that you’re stubborn and don’t want a baby and all of that,” 

“Silena -” 

“But just take the test. I don’t want you to be one of those women on I Didn’t Know I was Pregnant.” 

Clarisse took a deep breath as she unlocked the front door. “Fine, I will.” 

When they got to their apartment, Silena shouted, “Anyone home?” 

They all worked different hours, adding to the chaos of the four-bedroom apartment they had all shared since Silena and Clarisse’s freshman year. 

Castor was the camera man for the nightly news, so he was usually out at four in the afternoon and back after midnight. Chris and Charlie worked normal business hours. Pollux was always out with some acting job or another; Lee helped his mom manage their movie theater in the Village, keeping him out late too. Silena and Clarisse were usually the only ones home this time of day, with Silena working from home unless she had an event or a meeting, and Clarisse got home from teaching teenagers the joys of American history at about 3:30.  

After six years, though, they were all starting to pack up the apartment. They were all moving to the same building - they could never be that far from each other. The building was one of four “New Athens” buildings in the city. A demigod-safe building compete with free rent for Titan and Giant war vets. They couldn’t pass that up. 

Plus, Silena and Charlie were getting married in nine months, and neither wanted to be a newly wed couple with five roommates. 

Well, if Silena was right (which she was sure she was), soon to be six roommates. 

Clarisse took the pregnancy test box from Silena when no one responded and walked into the bathroom. 

“Let me know if you need anything,” Silena said through the door. 

“I’m sure I can handle this on my own,” 

“I’m just trying to be supportive,”

“Lena, this whole thing would be so much easier if you stopped talking to me,”

“There’s no reason to be nervous,” 

“I’m not nervous! I just don’t like talking to people while I pee. Just please, walk away from the door,” 

Silena sat on the couch and waited. 

Clarisse walked out a moment later, and put the pregnancy test on the coffee table. “Alright, three minutes,” she set a timer on her phone and sat on the couch. 

“Are you nervous?” Silena asked. 

Clarisse shook her head, “No, I’m pretty sure I know what it’s gonna say.” 

Silena took Clarisse’s hand. “Look it’s okay to be nervous,” 

Clarisse looked her in the eye, “I’m not nervous,” 

Silena huffed and dropped her hands. “Well, maybe you should be. Because you might be pregnant. That doesn’t make you nervous?”

Clarisse shrugged, “I already told you, I know what the test is going to say.” 

“Yeah, well,” Silena sat back, “you’re extreme confidence can’t undo a pregnancy,” 

“Silena -” Clarisse’s voice was soft and apologetic. But Silena cut her off again. 

“No, no excuses. No ‘I know what it’s going to say.’ You’re three weeks late, there’s no denying that fact.” 

“I’m not denying it! I’m trying to tell you -” 

The time went off. Silena tilted her head towards the test. “Do you want to look at it?” 

“You and look at it. I already told you, I know what it says,” Clarisse said. 

Silena picked up the test. Two dark blue lines. No denying it now. She felt vindicated. 

“Are you sure you’re sure?” 

“Yes,” 

Silena turned the test to face Clarisse, “Because it says you’re pregnant.” 

Clarisse smiled, waiting for Silena to catch on, “I know.” 

“You ...?” Silena threw the test at Clarisse, but she dodged it, and it clattered to the floor. “You bitch!” Silena yelled while smiling. “You already knew and you didn’t tell me?!” Silena leaned in and hugged her tight. 

“I was trying to tell you, but you weren’t letting me get a word in!”

Silena pulled away, “How long have you known?” 

“We’ve known for like a week,” Clarisse told her. 

“We? You told Chris before you told me?” 

Clarisse looked confused, “He’s the father!” 

“And I’m your best friend!” 

“Not the same.” 

Silena barely agreed that she was less important than Chris in this situation. "But still, if you’ve known for a week, and didn’t you tell me?” 

“We haven’t really told anyone,” Clarisse said, “not even our parents. We’re waiting until I’m twelve weeks to make sure that everything is okay. There’s still a lot that could go wrong right now. So that means you can’t tell anyone.” 

Silena rolled her eyes and smiled. “You know I always keep your secrets. But can I tell Chris that I know?” 

Clarisse nodded, “We expected you to figure it out before we told you.”

“And you don’t think the guys will notices?”

Clarisse shook her head. “Men are clueless.” 

“Wait,” Silena sat up straight. “When is it due?”

“Mid-June, so I won’t be pregnant for your wedding. I already checked.” 

Silena relaxed back into the couch. “This is crazy. I mean, you don’t even have any pregnancy symptoms or anything.” 

“Oh,” Clarisse corrected, “you were not in the Goode High School faculty bathroom this morning. Total blood bath.” 

Silena shuddered, “Gross,” she said before perking back up. “If it’s a girl, can you name her after me?” 

Clarisse rolled her eyes, “If it’s a girl we’re naming her after Chris’s mom.” 

“What about middle name?” 

Clarisse thought about it for a moment, “Maybe.” 

“But I’m the godmother right?”

Clarisse smiled, “Of course,” 

Silena squeezed and hugged Clarisse again. “Oh I am going to plan you the best baby shower of all time!” 

Chris got home around six and walked into a familiar sight. Clarisse was at the table grading papers, Silena was flipping through one of her new bridal magazine. 

“Hey Silena. Your wedding or someone else?” He asked pointing the magazine. 

“Always both, Christopher, always both,” she said without looking up. 

He walked over to Clarisse and kissed her hello. Silena watched them chat about their day for a few minutes, before Chris went to their bedroom to change. 

Silena followed him; if Clarisse noticed, she didn’t show it, staying fixated on her students’ papers. 

Silena walked in as Chris was pulling down his dress pants, which he quickly pulled back up. “Silena!” 

“Oh it’s fine!” She said, walking in and sitting on his bed. He re-buttoned his pants, though, putting off getting changed until she left. 

“What’s up?” 

Silena smiled, “You’re having a baby,” She said in a sing-song voice. 

Chris smiled but protested, “No, Clarisse is having a baby. I only contributed for like ten seconds.” 

“Nope, nope,” Silena said, “you’re going to be a father, and, therefore, you are having a baby.” 

Chris dug through his dresser drawer to find a pair of sweat pants and a tee shirt. “Well, I’m not the one who almost peed their pants on the subway last week,” He said. 

Silena gasped and laughed, “She did not!” 

Chris shut his eyes tight, regretting what he had said. “You probably shouldn’t tell her I told you that. She’ll kill me,” 

“Oh she sure will.” 

“Can you leave now so I can’t dressed?” 

Before Silena could leave, Clarisse walked in. 

“So she’s knows,” Chris said. 

“She figured it out,” Clarisse said. 

“You peed your pants on the subway?” Silena asked. 

Clarisse glared at Chris, who glared at Silena. “Almost,” Clarisse protested, “almost is the operative word in that sentence. I used the alley like a grown up.” 

Clarisse laid down on the bed, looking up at the ceiling. Silena laid down next to her, curling up into Clarisse’s side. 

These platonic “cuddle puddles,” as Silena called them, immigrated into their apartment from the Aphrodite cabin, and had become a staple of their group friendship over the last few years. 

Clarisse wrapped an arm around Silena and pulled her in close. Chris got on the other side of Clarisse, laying on his side, and propping his head up in one hand. 

“So you can pee in an alley but not when I’m talking to you?” Silena asked. 

Clarisse laughed. “That was a pee-mergency. You making me take a redundant pregnancy test was not.” 

“What?” Chris asked. 

Silena explained the events of the day, but she faltered as she got to the end. She noticed that Chris’s hand had rested on Clarisse’s abdomen and was rubbing small circles where he imagined the baby to be. Clarisse clearly wasn’t listening to Silena at all and was instead looking up and watching Chris’s face as he reacted to the story. 

Silena suddenly felt very overwhelmed with positive emotion for the couple. She had been so excited for her friend and for her own prospects as a godmother and baby-shower-planner that she failed to notice just how happy her friends were. Chris and Clarisse (who just last Forth of July had both nearly gotten alcohol poisoning in a competition to see who could take more tequila shots, for god’s sake) seemed completely happy, content, and calm. They seemed ready for it, somehow, like a couple in their thirties who had been trying for half a decade. They hadn’t just accepted the reality that they were going to be parents. They were excited about it. 

“Silena,” Chris said, “are you -” 

Silena cut him off with a sudden sob. Clarise turned to look at her. the couple pulled her into a hug as she blubbered out: “I’m just so happy for you two!” 

“We’re really happy too,” Clarisse said. Chris smiled, leaned down, and kissed her, only breaking it when that tender moment made Silena cry harder. Silena’s melodramatic happy crying only made the couple laugh. 

The puddle of bodies on Chris and Clarisse’s bed, both laughing and crying, was the strange sight Beckendorf came home to. “Everything okay in here?” 

“Charlie!” Silena said, still crying. She reached out her arms to him, encouraging him to join them all on the bed. 

“Why are you crying?” He asked her, sitting on the bed up by their heads.

Silena wiped her eyes. “Oh, you know me, I’m always crying.” Silena had promised to keep their secret, and damnit she was going to. 

Clarisse just smiled. “That’s not true,” she said. Clarisse leaned over Silena’s body to get to the night stand drawer. She opened it and pulled out a sonogram photo from the week before. There was hardly anything in the picture except for wavy black lines, but there was a little peanut shaped thing the doctors told them was their baby. 

She held the picture up for Beckendorf to see. His eyes went wide, “No way!” Chris and Clarisse nodded. “Congrats you guys!” 

Silena took the sonogram from him. “You didn’t show me this!” Silena said. “You know what, when I get pregnant, I’m not going to tell you for two weeks.” Silena told her. 

Clarisse just laughed, “We both know that’s not true.” 

Silena wanted to protest, but Clarisse was right. 

“So who else knows?” Beckendorf asked. 

“Just you two,” Clarisse said, “we wanted to wait to tell people until we were twelve weeks. Our parents don’t even know.” 

“But can we really have four out of seven of us know and not tell the other three?” Chris asked. 

Clarisse took the sonogram from SIlena. “Let’s just hang this on the fridge next to their wedding invitation and see how long it takes for them to figure it out.” 

“Oh absolutly not,” Silena said, “they’ll think I’m pregnant. Here,” Silena took the sonogram back and stood up. She grabbed a post-it note and a pen, and wrote Baby CR coming this June! With an arrow pointing at the little peanut. “Now you can hang it up.” Silena handed it to Clarisse.

“CR?” Clarisse asked. 

“You guys have the same initials. And ‘la Rue-Rodriguez’ is too long for a post-it note.” 

“Do you wanna hang it up?” Chris asked.

“Can you do it?” Clarisse asked. 

“You can’t do it?” Chris asked. 

Clarisse shook her head, “No, you see, I am pregnant so ...” 

“So you can’t get up and hang things on the fridge?” he teased. 

She smiled and patted his cheek. “I’m glad we’re on the same page.”

Chris looked at Silena and Beckendorf. “This is going to be a long seven months for me, isn’t it?” 

“Hey,” Clarisse protested, “I almost threw up in front of a room full of teenagers today. What did you do?” 

“Helped keep a person charged with a first time drug offense from serving an over-inflated prison sentence.” Chris told her. 

“That’s a really nice story, could you tell it to me while you’re making me something to eat?” Chris just laughed at her as he started to stand, but Silena took the sonogram and post-it from Clarisse and got off the bed first. 

“How about this,” she offered, “I’ll hang it up, we’ll leave you two alone and order a pizza?” 

Clarisse rolled over to look at Silena. “Is it too late for me to have your baby?” 

Silena leaned down and kissed Clarisse’s cheek. “Unfortunately,” she said. She started out the door and Charlie followed her. 

Silena hung the sonogram up the fridge, right next to her own wedding invitation and smiled. 

“You know,” Charlie said, wrapping his arms around her from behind, “Chris and I can never tell if you and Clarisse are joking about you two leaving us for each other.” 

Silena turned around and smiled. “It’s a joke for right now,” she said, “but should you and Chris ever prove to be unsatisfactory -” 

Charlie grabbed her by the waist and sat her on the counter, situating himself in the V of her legs. “Well then,” he leaned in and kissed her, letting his hands trailed up her thighs, “I’d better keep you satisfied.” 

Silena smiled against his mouth before asking. “When do you want to try and have a baby.” 

Charlie pulled away and brushed some of her hair behind her ear. “Whenever you want.” 

“You’re not just saying that so I don’t run away with Clarisse?” 

“No, I promise,” he smiled and kissed her again. 

“Well,” she said in between kisses, “we have two-hundred and seventy-one days until the wedding. So,” she kissed him again, “how about we start trying in,” and again, “two-hundred and seventy-two days?” 

Charlie smiled and kissed her again, “Sounds like a plan,”

~*~*~*

Notes

My goodness this was longer than I planned for it to be. It’s almost 3,000 words. Also I did that math, and their baby would be born in June of 2017. So the fanbaby is already two! 

If you’ve ready my other ChrisXClarisse baby headcanons, which take place in the normal time line, some of this is familiar. Although I did bump their ages up a year. in the original headcanons, they are both still in their respective graduate schools. Here, I moved them up a year. I just felt like if all their friends were alive, their twenties would be a little more fun and less melancholy, so they would be less likely to keep a baby they conceived while still in school, even if they are soon-to-be graduates.  

I also just really enjoyed exploring how Clarisse and Chris might be different (read: happier) had their friends never died. And what a relationship between Clarisse and Silena looks like nearly a decade later. (also sorry if it reads as queer-baity to anyone - the physical affection is based off of some of my own long-term female friendships. I am a queer woman so I am aware of how platonic physical female affection can sometimes read as fetishizing or queer baiting. But I didn’t want to leave it out, because I do believe that’s how their relationship to each other would develop had they been able to be friends for more than a year.)  

[derenger]

Growing up, parenting and gaming - Longread on life, computer games and finding yourself

This longread is dedicated to and written for all those current and former kids, who had or have troubles growing up, taking decisions, finding themselves in the world they live in, who play games independently of age and – perhaps – have not lost their love for a good game, good times and good buddies.

Perhaps it will help someone in their life. If that happens – I shall think of this writing as useful and my time writing it as not completely wasted.

The ideas have been on my mind for over 2 years now (they started getting very clear when I started doing therapy) and I have to put them on paper now.

Here it goes.

I grew up in the 90s in Eastern Europe. After the USSR collapsed millions of people found themselves without work, perspectives and means of existence. We were lucky that my dad had a good job that was paid in hard currency, however he was barely home – and by that I mean like seeing him 2 or 3 times a month.

We had good living conditions compared to others and my mom did the best she could too take care of my younger bro and me.

The first time we were exposed to computer games was when I was like 7 and my bro was 5 – in the office where the boyfriend of our aunt has been working. We played Dangerous Dave, Scorched Earth, Socoban, Digger, Civilization, The Incredible Machine and some others I do not recall the names. And of course, we liked it and it did not take long for our dad to install them on his PC at home. 2 years later my best buddy got Doom 2 installed on his PC and that was the absolute blast. We spent weeks trying to figure out how to get through level 2 and it was a big holiday when our buddy finally did.

My dad tried to restrict TV and computer time per week, so we always opted for the PC. Over time I learned to turn it on by myself and play when there was no one at home. My dad did not know.

A couple of our friends had 8bit consoles - soviet bootlegs of Super Nintendoes, with TMNT and Chip n Dale, but that was probably it. After all, we were living in a small village with not that many possibilities to make money.

When I was 10 we moved to a bigger city into a 1 room apartment. All 4 of us. This was 1996. 2 other very important things:

We started going to a far bigger school than before, where the mood was totally different from what we were used to. We were bullied and beaten, could not get along with other pupils and teachers and no one actually cared.

Father was home every day.

We started going to a far bigger school than before, where the mood was totally different from what we were used to. We were bullied and beaten, could not get along with other pupils and teachers and no one actually cared.

Father was home every day.

I mean, father was present home every day. It is not like he spent time with us doing sports or whatever. He just had any idea what to do with us as this was his first long time exposure to kids in the 11 years we were a family.

He was more of an authoritarian guy – we were not supposed to waste time in gaming clubs, listen to stupid music (Prodigy, Beastie Boys), we should have studied well, read books, have been doing sports and in general act like good kids.

We were doing some martial arts sports cause mom brought us there. We were taking music classes cause “everyone has to”. We were supposed to help out at home. We were not supposed to hang out with “bad” kid or stay outside till late hours. We were not supposed to smoke, swear and simulate illness to miss classes. We were not supposed to get into trouble.

It is not like we were putting a lot of thought into it. We just moved to the city from rural area and frankly speaking were absolutely not happy about. I guess we just went with the flow.

This was also the time when the first “gaming spot” in town opened – they had 2 Sega Mega Drives II and 1 Sony PlayStation. MK3, MK3 Ultimate, Contra Hard Cops, Golden Axe, some samurai fighting games for the Sega. SPS – Red Alert, Twisted Metal, Duke Nukem, Doom and of course – an incredible breakthrough for its time – Quake 2. And that was a revelation. I recall mom giving us money from time to time. To go play. Sega cost like 1 buck and hour, SPS – 1,5 bucks – far more expensive, so we played mainly on Sega.

At the same time we did have some games at home – Doom, Power Formula 1, Lines, the same Civilization, Lion King, Alladin, Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis, Gods and Dune 2000. Dad did not want to allow us play games. Like, at all. Don’t ask me why he never deleted the games. The PC was mainly used for him to work. So when he left home, he took the power cable of the monitor and closed it in his spare suitcase. What we did was to unplug the cable from the printer and use for the monitor. Later on he hid both cables – from the monitor and the PC in the suitcase. I found a way to open the suitcase with a very fine flat screwdriver. Mom hid the fact from our dad for a while until he noticed the suitcase was “broken”. I believe they did not speak with each other for a week. But I am still proud of the fact of cracking that suitcase! Fuck yeah!

Things started getting worse when I transferred to a lyceum - 1998. I was 12. This was like a gymnasium for hardcore science-kids, where they went deep into math and natural sciences. I was hysterical the first 2 years as I was barely making the program. Even my dad had troubles solving the math they gave us. Music classes turned to shits. I had no time nor mood for sport. But I had to keep doing it all. Just because. There were a couple of bullies in class, whose parents bribed the management of the school so that their kids would have fancy graduation papers at the end and frankly speaking no one could get a grip on them. That had me very depressed.

Around 13 I started stealing money from my parents and missing classes to go to computer clubs – their number was getting bigger every week, consoles started to disappear. Half Life, CS 1.6, Age of Empires 2, Q3, D2 1.07, Black and White, SimCity 2000, NOX, StarCraft Brood War and many other games had our full attention. The biggest part of it was the fact you could play with or against your friends! That was so fucking awesome! At the same time I started discovering sci-fi and rock music, but that is a different story.

We stole a lot of money from our parents in those times and missed a lot of classes and of course after 3 or 4 months it all got revealed. Boy oh boy our dad smoked us. That was very very tough for a kid when all the things he actually liked were taken from him. Dark times when we were seriously asking ourselves what the hell our parents wanted from us as aside from the stuff they told us to do they never really told us what was it for. Everything else was useless, stupid or waste of time.

Somehow my marks at school got better closer to graduation and I graduated almost with a medal, went to university. I remember they had this PC club with like 200 PCs and from time to time we skipped one or the other lecture to play Starcraft or CS, but very quickly boozing with buddies became the major leisure activity and pushed gaming to the back. I did pretty well at the university, made my master with excellence and that was it – 6 years flew by in a blink of an eye.

I got my own PC during the first year at the uni, played a bit of Warcraft 3, HOMM 3, Quake 3, Lineage II but it was not like I was deep into that. I remember after defending my master I spent like 3 days playing Crysis without anyone saying a word. I mean, I was through with the university. I was free!

Soon after that I went on to work abroad as a project engineer in the chemical industry.

At the moment I am doing sales engineer for a good salary in Berlin, I am married and except for the Corona and all the restrictions it brought life seems ok.

During the last 10 years of my “adult” life I have been in many different situations. I have been very sick a couple of times, running on the edge of life and death. I have been in some useless relations that only drained energy and nerves from me. I also have been diagnosed with depression and burnout at some point, did therapy and consider myself fully recovered from both. I’ll be summarizing it all below.

When I look at my life it did occur to me that gaming was far more important than just the sheer desire to shoot buddies and skip school.

Growing up under the conditions where everything is predetermined one does not really get the chance to expose your own wish. After all, my parents both come from very unhappy families and did not have the exactly best examples of parenting.

It occurred to me that they never really cared about anything we achieved – whether in school, music or sports. I recall a couple of times when I did really good, like winning the City-contest in English language or getting my first “good” in algebra in 7th grade as that shit was extremely tough. I do not recall any reaction. In fact, mom and dad put their close attention to us only when things started getting really bad, like when we were skipping classes or got arrested for setting up fireworks in a crowded place. We never really got any positive feedback for anything we did because our parents just had no idea how to do that. I do not blame them – they were trying their best from their own experience.

And gaming was the absolute opposite to all of that.

Going to computer clubs we knew exactly that we were surrounded by like-minded lads. We made some good friends along the way – lads, who were always ready to jam on de_dust or bring their D2 chars to share some loot. One of the owners of the club had a daughter who was really good in Q3 – I remember everyone has been looking at her like she was some sort of demigod. The games gave us the space and playground we needed so much – clear even rules for everyone. If you frag – you win. If you don’t – you lose. If you suck – the older guys would always help with a couple of tips. Games also gave us control. I really liked the games where you went on an adventure, like NOX or Will Rock or serious Sam. Gaming also gave us the space to take our own decisions and suffer the full consequences if these were wrong – getting overrun by zerglings or getting fragged with rocket launcher with QUAD DAMAGE.

Gaming clubs were our safe space. At some point our dad did raid the computer clubs and did bust us a couple of times. Sure we got beaten on those occasions.

I recall my bro being very proud on getting 1st in the national 2v2 ladder in SC:BW later in the uni. He also used to game the whole night long at my parents place. This was over 10 years ago and they still do not know. He is still very good in SC though he does not play anymore.

I do play sometimes – currently grinding D2 and refreshing my knowledge in chess. I do not have more time for any other more or less serious game.

I am slowly approaching the point where I should write a conclusion – it is going to be quite simple. Gaming was the first opportunity to take my life into my own hands. It took me 32 years of my own life to find the power in me to take responsibility for myself and not to rely on someone else. My decision – my choice – my consequences. It took a lot of trouble and turmoil for me to get to this point and finally embracing the power within feels great. It was also the first surrounding of dudes just like me, which was a very good feeling back then.

During the last 6 months I switched to a job that pays almost the double of my previous one, my wife moved in with me from abroad, we have a nice apartment and are looking forward to vacations in the Alps. I still have to find a way to approach my parents though I am not sure the old hive is worth disturbing. I guess time will tell.

Whenever I am down or things do no go according to play – I do turn to gaming occasionally, just to get back into the world where I am in full control. It gives me power and I guess hope that everything will work out. If not now – then over time. You just have to keep practicing. And ask for help when it is needed.

I hope you found this read interesting.

[weaverlings]

So I’ve been thinking about this for literally a week now and I’m not going to stop. 

And then I read @death-loodle 's excellent meta posts involving Hornet.

And anyway consider this a really long formal statement of: I’m just really worried about her… To what extent does she conceptualize her own existence as a gift to someone else? Like, I definitely do Not think she considers herself an object, but… she seems to have an unhealthily transactional view of relationships and her place in the world, maybe. 

And I started thinking about it, because of what the Midwife says about Hornet:

“That village above here, home to a sad creature. Hers is a tale of tragic exchange. Cost her and her people greatly, though I suspect she bore no regret in making it.”

Okay, so that’s not strictly about Hornet. But Hornet was the result of that exchange, and it’s relevant because… People most often exchange goods, right? Of course you can also exchange words or feelings or other things… But goods and gifts in particular are commonly exchanged. What Herrah gave is probably best defined as a “service.” 

And then she received Hornet. 

So what the Midwife actually says about Hornet (part of it):  “Then you’ve met her perhaps? Her who’d guard the mark, the Gendered Child. A spritely thing, isn’t she? Pale gift to the Nest and the Beast, fair trade for sacrifice made. Long she’s been distant. It’d do our spirits well were she to grace us a visit home…”

So Hornet… is a gift. A fair trade. This is a difficult thing to articulate, but - while Hornet’s existence is not actively used as a bargaining chip though who knows what Silksong holds, her existence itself was one. And the “pale” part to me reads like… Well, of course Hornet is the Pale King’s child, too, but you know. The Pale King wasn’t exactly Deepnest’s favorite monarch. 

But that does read with some gratitude. Like, he gave them (their queen, more specifically) exactly what they/she wanted. So Hornet’s existence may have changed the tune of Deepnest somewhat? Here I’ll say outright that I haven’t been to Deepnest yet, so if there’s more details on the broader view of the Pale King and how that might have changed, or not, I don’t have them. Would love to hear about that though??

Anyway, the important part of all this, imo, is how much of it did Hornet grow up hearing? Because what Hornet herself says is: 

“We do not choose our mothers, or the circumstance into which we are born. Despite all the ills of this world, I’m thankful for the life she granted me. It’s quite a debt I owed. Only in allowing her to pass, and taking the burden of the future in her stead, can I begin to repay it.”

She doesn’t sound like she resents feeling indebted to her mother, and it seems to have reached that conclusion on her own. She knows a lot about what went on in Hallownest, her mother’s sacrifice, the nature of the Vessels, the world and its ills… She knows why she exists. Herrah made a bargain, now Hornet exists, and Hornet considers herself to be in debt because of her mother’s choice.

And I’ll be honest, I just have a pretty visceral reaction to that sentiment. Like! No! Hornet, you do not owe anyone just for existing! Even just… being grateful for the chance to live is one thing, but it’s not a debt, and shouldn’t be treated like one. Which to be clear I’m not blaming Hornet, it’s just concerning.

Not to mention Hornet says that she hasn’t even begun to repay it yet - allowing Herrah to pass and taking on the future, which Hornet explicitly views as a burden, is how she does that. So… was every other thing she did, the purpose she had taken up in guarding the King’s Brand, not that? Like. How much is Hornet taking on here? And while she very much reads as/is a young adult, she’s also a demigod and was alive before Hallownest fell, so whatever she’s been protecting Hallownest’s remains for too long as it is…

Anyway I’m extremely pumped for Silksong.

[stoiicist]

character study: reyna ramírez 

—    basics.

▸     is    your    muse    tall    /    short    /    average ?

she’s just under 6′ she’s my tall girl and i love her so fucking much.

▸      are    they    okay    with    their    height ?

totally! i don’t doubt she could be just as intimidating and commanding if she was average height, but having a few extra inches on most people definitely helps. it also gives her some advantages when it comes to fighting, so there’s that.

▸     do    they    spend    a    lot    of    time    on    their    hair     /    grooming ?

reyna is my fav femme lesbian. she’s busy as hell running camp and looking after a hundred and some half-godly teenagers, but she still makes a point to put time into her appearance. she’s super into skincare, to kind of balance out how frequently she wears makeup. she has her daily/nightly routines and is committed to them with the exception of when she’s on quests. reyna is also dedicated to hair care; her hair is almost always pulled back in a braid, but it’s sleek and shiny and she’s very mindful of the products she uses because she wants to keep it healthy. also, reyna with her hair down is an absolute wonder to behold.

▸      does   your   muse   care   about   their   appearance   /   what    others    think ?

she’s in a position of great power; naturally reyna cares about her appearance. she cares immensely because she knows that her appearance is a reflection of the legion as a whole. she knows she has so many people looking to her, expecting so much from her and if she falters for a second, they’ll eat her alive. so in relation to her position as praetor, it’s important that she look and act the part of strong, unshakable leader. it’s important for morale and maintaining authority. she couldn’t care less if people disagree with her/don’t like her ideas/don’t like her/whatever else they make think about her, so long as they listen to her.

—    preferences.

▸     indoors    or    outdoors ?     outdoors. ▸      rain    or    sunshine ?    sunshine. ▸     forest    or    beach ?      beach. ▸      precious    metals    or    gems ?      metals. ▸      flowers    or    perfumes ?     perfumes. ▸     personality    or    appearance ?     both. ▸      being    alone    or    being    in    a    crowd ?     being alone. ▸      order    or    anarchy ?   order. ▸      painful    truths    or    white    lies ?     painful truths. ▸      science    or    magic ?     science. ▸      peace    or    conflict ?     peace, thought it’s a rarity. ▸      night    or    day ?     day. ▸      dusk    or    dawn ?     dawn. ▸      warmth    or    cold ?     warmth. ▸      many   acquaintances    or    a    few    close    friends ?      a few close friends. ▸      reading    or    playing    a    game ?      reading.

—    questionnaire.

▸      what    are    some    of    your    muse’s    bad    habits ?

by far her worst habit is completely shutting down the minute her emotions get too messy to understand. when they can’t be tucked away neatly in a box, it infuriates her to no end so she pushes them away. out of sight, out of mind, you know. and she flings herself into her work as a distraction, which is another bad habit of hers, overworking. it’s leftover from when she was running camp jupiter by herself and had so much on her plate and felt she had no one to really turn to. also i don’t know if this counts as a bad habit, but reyna is competitive as hell and can get a little too into what’s supposed to be friendly competition.

▸      has    your    muse    lost    anyone    close    to    them ?      how    has    it    affected    them ?

for demigods, it’s a fact of life; you’re going to lose people you care about, people who are close to you. reyna has a handful of people she considers “close” and she’s fortunate enough that they’ve all managed to ( sometimes narrowly ) escape death. but she is constantly losing comrades and even worse, reyna often feels directly responsible for the lives lost. she’s the one leading them into the battle. she’s the one calling the shots, choosing tactics and making the big decisions. every death of every solider in the legion falls on her shoulders and it weighs down on her like a ton of fucking bricks. never mind the fact that they are all children. she’s leading children to their deaths and she can barely be considered an adult herself. i think overall, it’s made her into a very self-sacrificing individual. she puts the needs of others far above her own and she’s more than willing to take on dangerous tasks in place of others. but she also recognizes that, as a leader, this is her duty. and she bears it, so others don’t have to.

▸      what    are    some    fond    memories    your    muse    has ?

finding camp jupiter. after passing up the amazons and the chance to stay with her sister, after going through lupa’s trials, even the difficulties to adjusting to life as part of the legion, reyna finds it all to be worth it. the moment she realizes she wants a home more than she wants power or family or control, more than she wants anything else, and finding that home in new rome is one of the happiest moments of her life. being elected praetor is a fond memory, as well; it speaks volumes that she was voted into the position by her peers despite only being part of the legion’s ranks for a few years. despite the circumstances, reyna definitely looks back on her date walk with annabeth around new rome very fondly. maybe it was a bit tenuous, but annabeth basically poured her heart out to reyna who just got to sit and listen to another girl with too much on her shoulders, someone she could really relate to. 

▸     is    it    easy    for    your    muse    to    kill ?

the amount of times reyna in the fucking books is like “we should’ve executed this kid it’s a shame he got away” or “let us execute you it might solve the problem” and just. the fact that she killed her father out of rage because she thinks he killed hylla........... leads me to believe that, yeah, it’s not difficult for her to kill when she sees the killing as just. she doesn’t kill for the sake of killing, without reason. reyna firmly believes in justice and sometimes death is the suitable punishment. maybe it’s harsh or cruel, but it’s also kinda the roman way. and reyna kills monsters without batting an eye, so.

▸      what’s    it    like    when    your    muse    breaks    down ?

it’s all done in private. reyna will keep it together right up to the moment she’s finally alone, and only then does she let it all out. only then does she allow herself a reprieve from that mask she wears so well, allows herself to be weak for just a moment. it’s a lot of fingernails digging crescents into the palms of her hands, hot tears streaming silently down her cheeks, jaw clenched so fucking tight she should be worried about breaking her teeth. hands shaking as she rubs her temples and fingers through her hair. and then there eventually comes a point where the dam breaks and she just starts... fucking sobbing. and she’ll just cry until she’s tired herself out and falls asleep with aurum and argentum curled up next to her. this made me really sad to think about i hate this actually.

▸     is    your    muse    capable    of    trusting    someone    with    their    life ?

to some extent, she has to. she much more used to having people put their trust in her, to being the pillar that everyone else leans on, but everyone has to trust someone. and it definitely takes a while for reyna to trust someone with her life. it takes time, it takes an individual proving that she can trust them. it’s not very easy to earn her trust, even with her dogs there to alert her when the truth is being told, but it’s possible. reyna is just accustomed to the politics of CJ being a den of fucking deceit and she’s felt abandoned by very important people in her life that it really takes a lot for her to trust someone to such a huge extent. 

▸     what’s    your    muse    like    when    they’re    in    love ?

there’s this... change in her disposition, you can tell she’s a lot more content. more relaxed, not so uptight. she’s not running around camp all starry-eyed and silly, but she just seems to be more at ease. getting to show someone the parts of herself that are usually kept hidden, getting to be tender with someone, it elevates reyna to this level of happiness she’s never had before.

she’s a distinguished lesbian, disaster adjacent so she’s still beyond awkward at times especially during those first few weeks. love, like everything else, has a learning curve. but reyna eventually figures it out, finds how love and maintaining a relationship fits into her routine, and she surprises herself with how much of a romantic she really is. there’s a balance to be kept; she’s still praetor with a boatload of responsibilities, but the reality is when reyna is smitten, there’s very little she won’t do for her gf.

tagged by : @sunbruise​ <3 tagging :    anyone who wants to!!!!

[lazy-cat-corner]

Faith and Trust [Some Uncle Loki drabble feat. Peter Parker]

Words: 900

Rating: General [pure wholesomeness, nuff said!]

Characters: Loki, Peter Parker and an original character.

“Mr. Loki,” Peter bends down next to The God of Mischief and squints his eyes. “who are you talking to?” 

Peter Parker learned fast to never assume that Loki is crazy. From everything he’s witnessed, the sorcerer has insight to realms and even realities that he can’t see. This seems to be one of those cases. Peter studies the ground Loki is crouched in front of. There is a small patch of flowers and he wonders if maybe it’s the flowers that are speaking to him.

Loki turns to Peter for a moment confused before he realizes his problem.

“I nearly forgot,” Loki says. He places his finger over the boy’s forehead and with a light tap releases seidr. “Not many people from Midgard can see fairies.”  

Peter blinks for a moment to let his eyes adjust.

“Did you just say...” He nearly gasps in shock at the four inch pixie sitting casually on top of a tulip. “Fairy,” he breathes.

“For some reason, I assumed you would have the ability to see them,” Loki frowns. “Pure heart and everything.” There’s an odd look of disappointment on Loki as he studies the young boy.

“Loki, darling, don’t be rude!” The small fairy tosses her dark hair and stands up. “Introduce me to your friend.” She straightens her dress.

Loki clears his throat. “I wouldn’t say he’s...” Loki’s voice trails off. “Anyway, Peter, this is Juniper!”

“Call me, Jun!” The fairy pipes. “A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Peter.” The fairy gives a curtsy. Peter returns with a bow to his head. “The fairies on Midgard know all about you!”

“Me?” Peter points to himself.

“Yes, you have done very kind things for the earth. We are grateful!”

“Oh, you know,” Peter blushes. “I do my best.”

“And that means all the world to us! Especially when we are the most ignored, here.”

“Speaking of-” Peter turns to Loki. “Have fairies always been around?”

Loki holds back a snort. It’s not the boy’s fault that Midgard chooses to be so ignorant to the rest of the universe. “Longer than my time. Jun, is actually older than-”

The fairy clears her throat. “I don’t think that is any of his concern. You see, Peter. Fairies have always been around. There are all different kinds around the realms. We help keep the earth and wildlife safe. Midgard is new and many people wouldn’t understand fairies. So, we hide ourselves here and only children, animals and some adults with very open minds could see us.”

Loki motions to the fairy. “Which is why Jun came to me.”  

“For more than a hundred years, things have just been really hard for the fairies living here.” Jun frowns. “The planet is suffering, people are creating too much waste. Even less children believe in us.”

“I promise you, Jun. The Norway settlement in Asgard is working diligently to grow more gardens for the loss of Asgard’s destruction. We will need a lot of vegetation and the farmers are teaching the new volunteers.”

“It won’t be enough, child.” Jun shakes her head. “We’re going to need more than your people to help.” The fairy lets out a hopeless sigh.

“Miss, umm...Jun,” Peter grabs their attention. “It might not be much, but what if I got Spider-Man to help out.” Peter stretches his arms up. “I could tell lots of people the importance of community gardens! Even recycling could help. Maybe even more children would believe if they spent more time outdoors!”

“That’s a wonderful idea! Thank you Peter.” Jun beams. “That’s the kind of improvement we could use.”

“Oh, really? You think it’s-” Peter clears his throat. “You’re welcome.”

“I like this boy,” Jun smiles. “He reminds me a lot of you when you were a child. Curious, expressive and...” Jun studies Peter, “kindhearted,” she smiles. 

Loki purses his lips and rolls his eyes. “I don’t think he needs to-

“Whoa!” Peter gapes. “You knew Mr. Loki when he was a kid?”

“Oh, yes!” Jun giggles. “I used to keep an eye on him in Alfheim when his mother was busy. That boy got himself in all sorts of trouble exploring the realm. Which reminds me,” Jun turns sternly to the mortified demigod. “you haven’t came over to visit! I got Cricket and Bud bothering me day and night about you!”

“My apologies,” Loki waves out his hand. “As you can see, things have been rather busy and I’ve been meaning to come to Alfheim but-

“No buts.” Jun interrupts. “You hop in the nearest pocket dimension and stop by for some tea!”

“Alfheim!” Peter is nearly bouncing up and down. “The fairy realm that Thor talks about. Oh, I’ve always wanted to see what it’s like. What is it like?”

“Come along and see for yourself! Loki will take you.” Jun smiles.

Loki’s eyes widen. “Now, wait a minute. I never agreed to-

“You will and you must! That way you have no excuses to come by. This boy deserves a proper tour of the realm and that will be your duty! Understood?”

“Jun,” Loki gives a sympathetic look.

“I mean it,” she glares. “Meet me at my cottage, and then we can discuss further matters about Midgard.”

After a few moments, Loki lets out a loud sigh.

“Alright, I suppose I could make some time.” 

“Be sure that Loki takes you, Peter and you tell me if he’s being difficult. I’ll set things right.” she gives a stern look.

“Yes, mam!” Peter nods.   

When the three say their goodbyes, Loki stretches his limbs and makes his way back to headquarters.

“Ned won’t believe this,” Peter breathes.

Loki opens his mouth. Ready to discourage Peter from talking about the fairies and stops himself. Perhaps there would be some good if Peter’s friend knew. After all, Jun said so herself. They need more children to believe.