#hermes hate club

[m00ng4z3r]

Luke is in fact the father of CHB. He tuck kids to bed, reads stories, kisses injuries, helps with homework. He thinks since he didn’t have a father he never wants another kid to feel that way

Alexander Hamilton gonna catch these fists rn

Luke Castellan

A/N: hcs cause I’m feeling feral

• Luke is a nail biter. He constantly picks and chews - drawing blood in the process.

• Luke hates the color green - it brings back terrible memories and makes him want to vomit.

• Luke loves giving forehead kisses - ones where he stays with his lips on your forehead for a long time conveying his love that way

• Luke is in fact the father of CHB. He tuck kids to bed, reads stories, kisses injuries, helps with homework. He thinks since he didn’t have a father he never wants another kid to feel that way

• Luke hates small spaces - it makes him claustrophobic. It reminds him of when he used to hide from his mother in the closet. Trapped. Sometimes at night he wakes you to come for walks outside - because the walls of the Hermes cabin were closing in

• Luke is a morning person - he has to be with all the kids in the Hermes cabin

• Luke likes the Rocky movies. He stole them from a thrift store on VHS. The boys at camp love it and even quote it (mostly Charlie and Luke)

• speaking of stealing - no one talks about how good he is at it. Sometimes he doesn’t even know he took anything until a few hours later when he looks into his pocket.

• Luke has no filter sometimes - especially around you - he blames the ADHD

• Luke is very good at sneaking around - very quiet on his feet

•Luke bounces his leg when he’s nervous

• Luke loves kids - he loves helping the younger campers. You don’t know if it is because he had a poor childhood - but secretly he considers most of the campers his children in a way

• Luke has crooked teeth - when he smiles one is chipped in the upper corner. When he laughs he throws his head back gripping at his chest - imperfectly perfect

• Luke likes domestic living it makes him feel safe and in control

• Luke only talks about his mom at night after episodes of grueling nightmares - never during the day - never in causal conversation - you never pry

• Luke has bug bites all over his legs - he always picks at them leaving scabs

• Luke makes decisions sometimes without thinking - he never really tries to think ahead

• Luke loves when you run your fingers through his hair - it helps him sleep

• Luke is a light sleeper - always prepared to wake when another Hermes camper has a nightmare

• Luke has panic attacks that frequently end up with him in your bed - vice versa

• When Luke hugs you it’s like he clings on - almost like him might never see you again

• Luke always dirty - whether it be dirt on his shirt - grass stains on his pants - leaves in his hair?

Okay I’m done for tonight

[shanastoryteller]

Happy vday

Can you do a pjo or God's and monsters, or dealers choice! 1💜

a continuation of 1 2

Luke thinks that this really is the end, here in this dirty alley in the middle of Chicago. He's going to die and Thalia's going to die and Annabeth is going to die and it's all going to be his fault because he's the oldest and this was his idea and he's an idiot.

He almost calls out for his father, but he knows it would be a waste of breath. Hermes is never there when he needs him.

The monster is bearing down on them and there's no storm clouds for Thalia to summon lightning and he just has his gold club and Annabeth's dagger just isn't enough to kill this thing dead.

Except instead of teeth and pain and death, there's a boy jumping on the monster's back, tan skin and dark hair and swinging a jeweled celestial bronze blade like Luke's never seen before.

He's good with a sword, his skills honed over the years where it was either victory or death, but this guy moves quickly and powerfully, his moves fluid in a way that Luke didn't know a person could move while swinging around a deadly hunk of sharp metal.

The monster dies in a shower of golden sparks. The boy turns to look at them, eyes a green with hints of gold, and a grin that that shows off his very white teeth.

He can't be more than a year or two older than him. Luke feels his face heat and hates himself for it.

Luckily Thalia doesn't notice because she's too busy staring at their savior. "What the - who are you?"

He taps his sword twice on the ground and it shrinks, turning into a ring that he slips one while bouncing on the balls of his feet. "Wow that was really - that can't have happened last time."

"What are you talking about?" Annabeth demands, scowl firmly in place.

"Don't worry about it," he says. "I'm Percy. It looks like you guys could use some help."

"You're a demigod," Luke says cautiously, because what else could he be, but if there was a demigod like this walking around he feels like he would have heard of it.

"Sure am," he says. "You guys are attracting a lot of trouble traveling together." He pauses for a beat then asks, "Want to attract some more?"

"No," Annabeth and Thalia answer at the same time.

"Sure," Luke says.

They're glaring at him, but what did they expect?

He's the son of the god of thieves.

And Percy is just asking to be stolen.

[witchesofvaliant]

A Cautionary Tale

Normally, we're not one to be deeply involved in online drama of any sort, but we don't tend to enjoy seeing injustice, ignorance, and harm come to others and stand by without saying a word if we can help it. I also don't want hate towards the other party involved, and I don't want anyone to target anyone. This isn't a war, this is a disclaimer and word of caution for anyone who is unaware of this situation.

The context:

I joined a discord server that actually originated through a tumblr blog here @atheneum-of-you (She goes by Poppy and will be referred to as this or as "the owner" the rest of the way) and while I hoped for the best, what I found was a fairly dangerous community in terms of helpol communities that can be found online, and after simply communicating my discontent with the owner over her passive aggressive attitude, and after trying to communicate logic in a mess of chaos, I was publicly made fun of and kicked, with the staff and friends of staff continuously and publicly joking about their actions.

Honestly? I'm not upset at that, I am however concerned about the issues that this incident exposed along with multiple others that we will get to along the rest of this post.

1: Religious Misguidance & Cult Practice

Now the primary issue of all here, so your time isn't wasted by reading this VERY long post.. The owner and the cult mentality surrounding the server. Poppy has established herself as the resident priestess under Hermes, and creating an environment that has shown time and again, that if you are in good graces with her and in agreement with all she says, then all is good, your life and your religious practice and spirit is well and your wellbeing with your deities is in good hands. She claims to be able to speak to the gods to tell others what the gods think of them, and others in the server are ridiculed, ignored, warned, or just outright banned, when disagreeing or simply trying to educate her and others with another perspective on a topic concerning practice and belief. Any ideas offered on protection, cleansing, or even just other ways to practice in having a relationship to the gods are met with ridicule and ignorance, with many members outright refusing to believe or listen to suggestions of cleansing stating that they are not "witches" and do not perform "witchcraft", funny enough, many religions support cleansing as an actual practice (holy water is one example of this). All actions taken by the majority of members, tend to be to crowd around the owner and to act nearly with praise toward her, approving of her every word, and hanging on in desperation for her readings (as just one example). But here, I'd just be going around in circles at this point, so here's an excerpt from this site on the psychology of cults: "Let’s start with a definition of “cult” from the APA Dictionary of Psychology as a baseline:  “n. 1. a religious or quasi-religious group characterized by unusual or atypical beliefs, seclusion from the outside world, and an authoritarian structure. Cults tend to be highly cohesive, well organized, secretive, and hostile to nonmembers.” " - This does coincide with the religious nature of the server and the lack of focus on education on outside topics, instead being reliant on Poppy's word and only her word. "Most cults share some common traits:  

They’re usually led by a charismatic individual whom the members worship without question. 

Cult members often live together in their own dedicated community. " - This does agree with it being led by Poppy, who constantly has shown a kind and good-natured intent, with deep-seated passive aggressiveness when given any form of genuine objection.

"The Psychology of Cults: How They Lure People In and Take Control 

Cults recruit new members anywhere you might expect to meet new people: social media, discussion groups, community clubs, events, and the like. These are typically nonthreatening, public situations that would not cause anyone to be suspicious. Cult recruiters get to know as much as they can about people and identify individuals who may be receptive to meeting a group of the recruiter’s friends at dinner or another social event. Though the chosen targets are generally unaware, these seemingly innocent gestures are the first steps to being drawn into a cult.   Obvious enough, but this speaks to the unknowing people that go into this seeking a kind community within helpol, getting to know the person happens automatically within the server, especially with introductions and so on.

Targeting Vulnerable Prey 

Receptive people are those who are looking to escape something—such as an unhappy life situation—and to belong, be accepted, and find meaning. Cults prey upon the vulnerable among us, such as teenage runaways, drug addicts, abuse survivors, those who have lost someone close to them through death or a breakup, those suffering from insecurity or mental health issues, or anyone who feels disconnected from society.  I myself had done readings for several people within the server, all of them in desperate need of guidance, and many admitting to needing their deities and even Poppy's help as they don't know how to live without either one of the two or both. And again, many in this server are definitely minors as well.

Drawing in Recruits 

Once the potential recruit is in the presence of cult members, typically still oblivious to the group’s agenda, they are showered with love and validation. This tactic, referred to as “love bombing,” makes the recruit believe they’ve found what they’re looking for and more likely to return for group activities in the future. This is critical in the early stages of cult indoctrination since the recruit is not yet under their influence and needs to feel secure.  The love bombing is done primarily by Poppy and the constant drilling that the deities are all telling her that you are definitely on the right path and need to keep going and keep devoting, as well as the seeming constant extreme kindness from Poppy (saying literally they are a "found family"), and after that, there's the many posts of documentation from Poppy literally named "lessons" on how you should practice that you are encouraged to read through (As well as other documentation written throughout the server on how to practice also written by her).

Taking Control  

As they indoctrinate new members, many cults separate them from their families, friends, and jobs, slowly remaking their identities to suit the group. They may force recruits to surrender their money, belongings, and bodies to the cult’s leader and other members. Sometimes they compel new members to marry people they just met. They may use punishment, deprivation, and other tactics to wear them down. These efforts, which sometimes include threats, make new members dependent on and afraid to leave the group. Fully indoctrinated members often engage in behavior they never would’ve considered in their former lives. " Members are encouraged to commit FULLY to the deities and give over their lives to them, there is a culture already established where the members are speaking constantly as if every single little thing in their life is to be devoted to the gods, and as if the gods are responsible for every little aspect of their life. There is a constant "joke" of how you should not push the owner or she'll ban, and I was quite literally told "You should watch how you act with our priestess", which I would say is evidence enough to prove this fact as well.

2: Racism

So, for the record, I am a large mix of cultures and backgrounds just within my immediate family, and within the last two generations of my family. I primarily identify with being Latino from Puerto Rico, but I am also of Indigenous background through my Puerto Rican ancestry (Taino tribe), I have Spaniard in me, Trinidadian and Jamaican, as well as British, and that is what I know of and am closest to. With that said, I go to the BIPOC channel they have in this server, and see several Latinos from various Latin countries, talking about how people from the US, especially Latinos from the US just don't understand how things work outside of the US and aside from making some other crude jokes on this, they start calling us gringos, which for context, can be used as a derogatory word/slur in many uses, meaning someone involved in white American culture or a white person (especially from the US), it was inappropriate, and after bringing it to the owner's attention, she proceeds to ban the word, but still not bring any justice to the people using it after they continued to defend using a slur and using it AS a slur, and she seemed to have needed my help in explaining to her, because she was not a part of the "Latino community" why that word is negative. I would think seeing it being used in negative context would provide the common sense to ban use, but she and other mods did admit not even moderating that chat and many others, so I digress.

3: Minors and Adult Content

This server is not 18+, now that's fine, but when doing so, especially with it being run by a supposed adult, that adult must have measures in place for minors to be safe in an online space, at least when that is a primary concern for you. The server has roles that only go down to 15 y/o, and if the server is restricted to that, there is no way for mods to genuinely tell such a thing as many minors lie about their age, and Discord allows ages as young as 13. Now, again, if you are putting measures in place for them, that's fine, but the NSFW/Adult channel is not truly safeguarded. All one needs to do is have a role for it and boom you're in! Of course, I have seen some "wonderful" adult content casually spoken about outside of that channel anyway, so it isn't as if it truly matters then. Sex-related things, and especially smut fiction is joked and SHOWN casually in several areas of the server.

4: Godspousal

I'm jumping straight into this one because this links with the previous point made in some ways. The channel focused around this is also only blocked by an adult age role, and that's a real shame, as there is no other protection for minors to just go in and start seeing casual talk about godspousal relationships with their "dad". What does that mean? Well, they'll call any close relationship with a deity a godspousal at this point. Familial, sibling-like, romantic, sexual, it doesn't matter, they can all be godspousal relationships. You decide if that sounds screwed up or not, but I don't agree with casual talk of incest.

5: Inappropriate Treatment for LGBT+ & Neurodivergent

Speaking of having used slurs, there are separate chats for neurodivergent and LGBT+ people there, let's start with the neurodivergent channel, where people start using "neurospicy" to joke about neurodivergent terms and to use it jokingly, now at this point, another member had informed people, and myself as I hadn't been aware of this either, that the term above was originally developed as a slur/infantilization towards neurodivergent people, mentioning also that the term "weeb" was also created as a slur towards the Japanese, and the response of all in the chat was to blatantly joke and continue using the words and proceed to ignore the member who was informing others about the issue. Moving on to the newly created LGBT+ channel, after calling it "skittles", they proceed to introduce themselves like they're in an AA group, with their name, and then LGBT+ orientation, you decide if that's a little uncomfortable to act like it's all a game and a trend, saying things like "princess is my gender" by the owner herself, and another member using "transwomen" as a gender because they just feel like it, and to each their own, but as a plural system, and someone not against endogenic systems, that's not what was being talked about, instead this was along the vibe of the latest trend found on tumblr and reddit.

6: Priesthood & A Cycle Created

Now, in this, there are multiple pieces to speak of that are cause for concern. Of course, this is a community centered around a religious community, so this would be the largest part to hold concern over, and while godspousal and cult practice was spoken of above, I want to speak of another major focus of this server: priesthood. The server was created by someone who claims they are a priestess to Hermes, and seeks to motivate many others, including a minor who is completely new to this situation into priesthood for the gods. There are many instances where people with little understanding of what they're even doing, little experience even understanding the gods, and little awareness of who they are even following with barely any time spent following these deities. While I dare not judge others' beliefs, practices, or experience, the true concern is that this is a cycle within the server to motivate or believe you can become a priest/priestess to a deity in no time, and being "training" at which point you must be absolutely devoted, and that the owner, Poppy, must be approving of your relation to the deity (and thus has the power to tell you that you can be a priest/priestess to that deity), but if a reading from her says differently, then you MUST rethink your entire life decisions (But that much was already mentioned in the first section). This cycle of believed intense devotion and living life FOR the deities creates an unhealthy fixation in many who understand no other way to worship or even live, and devote their entire life, health, body, and mind to deities, crediting everything to their deities, at this point, turning what is a non-organized religion into an organized religion reminiscent of strict Christian practices.

Conclusion

With all that said, I genuinely write this wishing that the members of the server will open their minds, think deeply and reflect on the people they are affecting with this. If you want to have a fun community to enjoy each others' company, then make that, but don't turn it into what is a religious community server that looks as if it is meant to teach and preach certain beliefs, even contradicting a supposed want for freedom and openness to all beliefs and religions/practices. I dearly wish the best for those in that server/community in the end, and only seek to educate and as the title says, provide a cautionary tale, especially so the younger audiences involved understand that there is much more out there that is safer and healthier for them than this environment and the ideas that they have been led to believe are healthy for them. All the best to anyone who sees this. <3

[sagelasters]

luxurious fragrance ideas to manifest (tried n tested!)

❀ 🪷 ུ these are a few fragrances that i tried and then end up adoring them. i thought i would make a fun little post to give you suggestions if you need something specific to manifest!

𓇼  st barts by ouai

my favourite summer scent but it works if you live in humid countries. honestly my holy grail, there's something about this scent that gives me a tropical holiday vibes. i swear to god you would literally smell like you got money, but it's not a boring fragrance! not sure to describe but you can pick up a light hint of coconut and fruity scent. i dont think ouai released a perfume (they really should) but so far there's a body scrub, body cream (my favourite), shower gel, and body/hair mist. highly recommend this if you want to smell like the hamptons (i know it's specific).

𓇼  allegra baciami by bvlgari

another top favourite, this is actually my signature scent (i dont gate keep) and i have a lot of fragrances so yeah! i was on a search for good vanilla perfumes and where im from, people don't really like sweet fragrances since the weather here is usually hot. i really hate floral scents so i tend to stay away from popular perfumes like gucci blooms. anyways, i smelled allegra baciami in store and was blown away! it smelled like vanilla but i could pick up hints of coconut, amber and musk. the scent overall has depth to it and you just straight up smell like luxurious vanilla when the perfume dries up. i need to try their lotion next though.

𓇼  eau de rhubarbe écarlate by hermes

this one is more of a fruity scent but i wouldn't classify it on the sweet zone. it's definitely very fresh and you can smell a bit of berries, i would considered this scent as gender neutral (i mean men can use women perfume too if they like). it reminds me of red wine and a dance into your local jazz club. i would definitely recommend this fragrance for someone who is more into neutral scents, or they just don't like anything sweet or floral.

𓇼  j'adore eau de parfum by dior

a classic scent and you've been probably heard of this if you're really into fragrances. this used to be an everyday scent for school because i feel like it fits any occasions. initially when you spray it on your skin, you can smell a little bit of vanilla but a slight floral scent too. like i said, i hate floral but i love this one bc the floral notes isn't too overpowering. when the wind blows, the caramel and amber notes just blossoms in your nose. i think this specific version of j'adore is more bright and lively, just a very young scent!

❀ 🪷 ུ okay that's enough rambling from me but if you're looking for rlly good fragrances, girl i got u!! hope u found smth u liked from my list, im a little biased bc i love sweet scents, rlly sorry if you're a floral girlie.

[gothamite-rambler]

Rose and Raven: Trauma Bonding Buddies

Context: This connects to how they were portrayed in Teen Titans Go!—and I have to admit, that’s one of the few things I genuinely enjoyed about the show. It introduced me to Rose Wilson, and I also thought Terra's portrayal in it wasn't bad either.

Raven spotted Rose Wilson standing by the entrance of Titans Tower. Dick Grayson had told Raven and the other Titans that Rose was making great progress on being a better-ish person and no longer following her father's commands. She had proven trustworthy on a few missions with them, continuing to use the name Ravager.

Most of the Titans admitted they didn't trust her fully, but she was welcomed back to the team, and there she stood outside, texting on her phone. Raven had never hated Rose; in fact, she was one of the few people who came off as chill and relatable… to Raven, in an odd way.

Raven (walking over to the woman): Don’t let this blow up in my face—hey, Rose.

She waved, quickly lowering her arm to avoid looking awkward.

Rose (looking up from her phone): Rav—wait, Rachel, right?

Raven (slightly surprised): You—you remembered my other name?

Rose nodded with a smile.

Rose: How have you been?

Raven: Not bad. Kind of a less sucky life at the moment.

Rose: Mm, I know that feeling.

Raven: You do? Well, you are related to Slade, so I… guess you would. Not that I'm personally insulting you. Your dad sucks, not you. Is it okay to insult him?

Rose chuckled and shrugged.

Rose: I wear different colored eye patches now because I thought it would 'impress' him, and he screwed a teenager. I give you full approval to mock him all you want.

Raven: Awesome! Been wanting to say this then: he is seriously a massive butt head.

Raven let out a dry laugh, an uncommon sound for her, but the half-smile tugging at her lips revealed her effort to lighten the mood. This faint amusement spread to Rose, who initially resisted but couldn’t hold back any longer. She nodded in agreement with Raven, adjusting to the fact that her father was awful. Laughing at the goofy insult helped.

Rose: "Butt head" is an interesting description, but I don't disagree. You're being too nice, honestly.

Raven: I'm starting off small. Don't worry; as a member of the awful dad club, I know it takes time to grasp the full butt head picture.

Rose offered a knowing smile, then sighed as she propped her hand on her hip.

Rose: What really sucks is having to trick him into thinking I'm still loyal to him because I have no idea if he'll be a normal deadbeat dad and leave me the fuck alone.

Raven: You get used to it. My dad is horrid, as stated, but I swear he's like Hermes—only instead of tricks, he's petty. He inconveniences me in odd ways. One time, he sent me a Christmas gift in March, mind you, and it was filled with nothing but glitter.

Rose's smile was laced with curiosity as she raised an eyebrow, fascinated by the issue surrounding the glitter box.

Rose: What's bad about that? Was it cursed?

Raven scoffed, waving away that concern.

Raven: Glitter in a box is bad enough, but it was a stupid glitter bomb. That's how I knew what it was—and that glitter hurts like stubbing your toe in the worst possible way.

Rose (jokingly): At least you didn’t lose an eye.

Raven: Nah, but cleaning off my skin alone was not fun.

Raven pretended to scrub her arm, then showed the back of it to Rose, who saw a few specks of glitter on her arm. Rose laughed but covered her mouth.

Rose: Sorry, sorry, it’s just… that’s such a petty yet calculated thing to do.

Raven (happy): Right? The worst. Which leads me to a question I've been wanting to ask you because I'm nosy: Can you still see well with one eye now?

Rose blinked, surprised to be asked that question. When she saw that Raven was genuinely curious, she chuckled dryly.

Rose: Yes, the eye I stabbed wasn’t my good eye, I guess, and I can see relatively well—just not things on the eye patch side. Great news, though: designer eye patches are a thing. Definitely better than a solid black eye patch like he wears.

Raven: It works for you. Not going to lie, but you're so pretty. If I'm saying that it makes it true.

Rose (taken aback by the compliment): Why, thank you! I try to keep up appearances.

Rose flipped her hair, making Raven laugh flatly again.

Raven (hesitant but feeling bold): Hey, um… I’d actually like to keep talking. We can get lunch together or… go to the park or… I have no idea what girls do when hanging out together. Starfire started dating Nightwing and got… distracted.

Rose tucked her phone into her pants pocket and crossed her arms.

Rose (sincere): Honestly, if you were any of the other Titans, I'd say no—or “fuck off”—but I’m up for lunch.

Raven (surprised, deadpan): Seriously? I thought you’d say… the other responses or worse.

Rose shrugged with a side smile.

Rose: You were one of the few people friendly to me when we first met, even after you found out who I was unfortunately related to. Then I revealed myself as a double agent because Slade brainwashed me into working with him, and you were there trying to reason with me. When that didn't work, you—

Raven (interrupting): I gave you a magical girl beatdown? I've been watching a lot of Sailor Moon. Excuse my weirdness.

Rose chuckled, covering her mouth to hide her smile.

Rose: You're fine, and right, and funny too. When I finally realized what a piece of shit my dad is and left, I wanted to get back in contact with you, but the other Titans don’t trust me at all—except for Nightwing and maybe Starfire.

Raven (sincere): Nightwing is nice like that. I could see what Slade was doing to you, and I wanted to help you as best as I could. I guess I have the "bad dad radar"; might be an extra power I got. But wait… I'm on the same level with him?

Rose nodded, playfully punching Raven on the arm.

Rose (complimenting): You’re way cooler and strange, but in a good way.

Raven held her down with a smile as she kicked her foot playfully, happy with the compliment.

Raven (shyly): I've been working on having a good mix of stoic but kind when I actually like the person—goth girl essence if you will. Glad I'm not failing at that.

Rose agreed with a bemused expression as she placed her left hand on her hip and shifted her weight that way.

Rose: It's definitely paying off. You’ll have to give me a few tips. You just have this mysterious yet warming aura—not evil though. Sorry, I feel like that sounded dumb to you.

Raven (nonchalantly): Oh, you’re not wrong. Good read, which I've been practicing a lot lately, so let me try it on you.

Raven squinted her eyes while looking Rose up and down, and Rose stood there eagerly, waiting for Raven's reading.

Raven (accurately): Hm… how do I put this? You have a mysterious aura yourself, but less “stab me after hitting me with your car,” and more “jaded but mellow.” If that makes any sense.

Rose (agreeing): It does. My line of work, without dealing with daddy dearest, has led me to become more bad-ass and mellow.

Rose semi-posed as she rested her arms behind her back. Raven rolled her eyes with an amused head shake.

Rose: Seriously, though, I've been getting better mentally, especially since Daddy Dearest is locked up. We can talk about family issues over lunch instead of standing outside the Tower. You ever been to Chili's?

Raven tilted her head, remembering that particular chain restaurant.

Raven (reluctantly): I’ve heard it’s awful to eat there.

Rose: Nah, that's Waffle House. Chili's has a mediocre atmosphere, but the food is good. We can take my car. I love the jalapeño poppers; they're the best. That’ll help while I ramble about my dad being the worst parent ever.

Raven chuckled in a scoffing tone.

Raven: Excuse me, but as the daughter of a demon lord, I have to disagree—save it for Chili's.

Rose (walking with Raven): Are you arguing that your father is worse than mine? Rachel, you jest.

Raven (wagging her finger): Nuh-uh, we’ll discuss this further at the restaurant. Oh, and you can call me Raven or Rachel, but honestly, I trust you enough to call me Rachel.

Rose smiled.

Rose: All right then, Rachel. I’ll treat today, but you’ve got the next meal.

Raven (nodding with a smile): Works for me… This might be me being sappy, but I'm glad you're back, Rose.

Rose winked and got into her car, with Raven sitting in the front passenger seat.

Rose: Not sappy at all; I'm glad to be back. Especially to hang out with you. Now, you want to wear these shades? I don’t really need them anymore.

Rose passed over a pair of retro-styled sunglasses with a chuckle. Raven took them and placed them on her eyes, then let out a little chuckle in a sincere way while giving a thumbs up. Rose smiled as she started her car and drove down the road with her new friend.

Raven and Rose being best trauma friend

Rachel “Raven” Roth and Rose Wilson debating over who had the suckier dad pt 2.

Rose's advice for the day

[strawberry-spectre]

saw someone say Spelldon's only chara trait is being Valentine's bf so heres some Spelldon hcs >:(

his first instrument was the lyre, Apollo had taught him how to play bc he followed Hermes everywhere to hear him play again

he was born from the blood of Circe, rebirth and growth potion and the Costus spectabilis (national flower of Nigeria)

he used to braid the Aeaean nymphs hair as a child and got really good at it

he has dimples

he's insanely curious

he DIYed 80% of his clothing

he pierced all his ear piercings by himself with a sewing needle

he hates labels bc other monsters compared him to Casta growing up

he doesn't fear anything, fear fears him

he will wake up at the break of dawn every morning just to watch the sun rise then go back to sleep

he used to make dandelion wine with Casta and his mother every summer, it's one of his favourite memories of Aeaea

he used to run around Aeaea barefoot until he stepped on a sharp rock and started bleeding

he first started travelling with Casta when he was 14 and she was 16, he works backstage during shows

he likes dancing

his powers is dependent on the sun, the more sunny, the more powerful he is, thats why he loves summer

he mainly focuses on potions making though, so his natural powers are mid at best

ask him about politics and you'll be listening to him for 4+ hours

he gets sidetracked really easily

sometimes he will just stand while gazing out a window looking very pensive with his hands behind his back, and his mind would just be empty

his handwriting is lowkey sharp

he will look up to the sky and start talking about stuff, to others it seems very strange but he's just talking to his grandfather :D

he's in Environment club, MH Music Society, Mad Science club and SKRM

he's 17

he's lowkey stressing bc he doesn't know what he wwanna be in the future

one of his pet peeves are monsters who walk slowly

he's chaotic good

Circe never stopped his curiosity and encouraged him + gave him oppotunities to explore and investigate so he's become really independant, pesistent and a good problem solver

he has noise cancelling headphones with spikes

he has slit pupils cuz i think it'll be cool

he's a bit reckless bc he wants to prove himself and lowkey impatient

he hates when monsters bordeline yell when they sneeze bc it always jumpscares him

he loves collecting pretty plates and cups

he likes playing rpg games

he speaks english, greek and italian

he steals Casta's credit card all the time

constantly doodling

doomscrolls on social media when he can't sleep

when he's flustered he takes a step back and averts eye contact

his bed is full of plushies, and his walls are filled with posters

loves wearing fishnets

he's half nigerian and half greek

he tried to pierce his own snake bites at 3am but before he could Casta busted the bathroom door open and forced him to go to a professional

loves late night walks/early morning walks

professional procrastinator

he doesn't like Ghoulish Literature class bc he doesn't like writing essays

introvert

struggles with having a monotone voice, he sounds neutral even if he's excited or angry

resting bored face

[chicken-wayng]

Will Solace loves Grey's Anatomy.

He has time for an episode a night, which he promptly falls asleep during. When he and Nico first started dating, Nico tried calling Will out on it: ["You can't be watching it if you're really asleep." Will knows all the lore, can tell you every inaccuracy, and where the characters could have done better. "You're not really asleep." Will agrees, he doesn't think he's passing out, but a week's worth of recordings and a stolen EKG/ECG machine (thanks Hermes cabin!) proves he is. Every night, as soon as the episode starts his eyes droop, his neck bends back and he starts to snore. "You've seen it before!" Will hasn't, and even swore on the River of Styx. "You've looked it up." Another swear.] Yet no matter what Nico comes up with, the answer still seems as if Will is just somehow doing it through some sort of osmosis.

Regardless, Will runs the Grey's Anatomy fan club which has members from all cabins but primarily Apollo, Athena, Aphrodite, Poseidon (Percy "just watches it for Sally" (yfr) and Tyson started it with her one time when Percy had to run home really quick and they ended up making a making a tradition of it. They're not as hardcore as the others), and Ares. The other cabins have their own fandom-clubs and watch parties, but the Grey's Anatomy group is the biggest. The Poseidon and Ares cabins like to pretend they're not as interested as they are, but they're the most aggressive recruiters. Aphrodite cabin obviously writes the best fanfiction, but their Grey's ff is NEXT LEVEL. Practically novelizations that would make PUBLISHED Doctor Who and Star Wars authors works look like the insult certain folks mean fanfiction as. The Apollo cabin beta reads the medical parts for them and the Athena cabin comes up with more ways for them to access it (audio recordings, dyslexic friendly print, there's a girl from the Athena, a boy from the Apollo and one of the big ff writers from Aphrodite all working on a graphic novel version), and even the Ares cabin and the Hermes kid help - by holding a raid on the store where a lot of things were stolen but primarily paper. It becomes Grey's Madness; the content going around is borderline copyright infringement but no one cares because no one is making money. Chiron even implements a No Spoilers rule because some students are further ahead than him (yes he's older than it is, but he's busy running a camp full of kids that are responsible for stopping world ending events,,, like give him some slack).

Nico, Clarisse, and Mr. D hate Grey's Anatomy.

[wolfpants]

Terrible People, a Drarry Fic (Chapter One: Men Are Shit)

Terrible People | Chapter 1/9 | Rated E

The Gay Cruise fic™️ is here! Thank you so much to @getawayfox (for creating wonderful art as well as being an amazing cheerreader and friend) and to @citrusses for the best cheerreading and beta/alpha advice! To all of you who have had to hear me go on and on about this for... well, over a year. Here you are. I hope you enjoy. Chapters will be posted on a weekly basis.

Tags: EWE, minor Harry/Charlie, past Draco/Zacharias, background relationships, romance, romcom, meddling friends, beaches and beach holidays, cruise ships, clubbing, summer holidays (in september), truth or dare, adults playing games designed for teenagers, Harry is in a silly goofy mood, Draco has a dog called Hermes, Healer!Draco, Sports Media Mogul!Harry (but really he just sits around all day buying art from Sotheby's), Drarry in their (late) 30s, pining, FWB, FWB to lovers, smut

-

What happens when Harry and Draco end up on the same Muggle gay cruise? They certainly didn't plan for it to happen (but their friends might have). They're stuck with each other for a week, they might as well make the most of it, right?

Featuring a holiday-long game of Truth or Dare, a very ill-judged FWB proposition, decades-long pining, lots of gin, and a small pair of green swimming trunks.

🍸🛳🩴☀️🕶

“We thought about a cruise, but we wanted something less wild, you know?” Justin says.

Draco hums distractedly, looking at the buildings around them, at the milky blue and burnt-orange sky as true night draws in closer.

“We did see a cruise aimed at singles,” Ernie says. “Single gay men, I mean.”

Draco pauses. He makes a face. “Thank you, but no thank you.”

“It’s Muggle,” Justin adds excitedly. “Draco, you should see it. It’s stunning! The boat, I mean—it’s huge. Top of the line. Four swimming pools. Four! And a fully kitted spa and gym.”

“A cinema, a theatre, loads of bars and clubs and restaurants,” Ernie says. “We think you’d love it.”

Draco frowns. “What on earth makes you think I’d love it? I haven’t been out clubbing since I hit thirty, you know that. And,” he adds dramatically. “I hate boats.”

He doesn’t really. His feeling on boats in general is pretty neutral, but he knows where they’re going with this, and he’s not having it.

So he stands, resolute, on his lie.

-

read chapter one: men are shit on ao3

expand to view El's beautiful cover image in full!

[deathmetalunicorn1]

Hello!

Can I request with RoR gods?

Where darling/reader who's a fan of some movies/games/anime/manga/books and simps for one of the characters in it. And the character they like have a similar characteristics (name, looks, traits or personality) as the (God)…

What would be the reactions of the Gods and what'll they do?

(Ex. Loki- hearing his darling says his name, and he teleport to where his darling is, when his there, he saw his darling's simping at the character, who's named also Loki at the movie, Marvel, as she watches the show Loki getting annoyed or jealous when darling simping for a character that similar like him;

Hermes's darling simping on Sebastian Michaelis from Black Butler, and Hermes's internally annoyed by it, so he watches/ reads & try imitating it to impress his darling)

w/: Loki, Thor, Hermes, Apollo, Poseidon, Hades, Hercules, Beezelbub

I hope you like this! I wasn’t able to think of any characters for Hercules, Beelzebub and Hades, so I did not write them. I do apologize.

-Loki- Hated this other ‘Loki’, an actor portraying him in this movie, The Avengers, who was suave and elegant looking, mainly because you had hearts for eyes as you watched the scene where he’s in his black and green suit. He teeth ground together as you whispered his name wistfully, immediately pouting, “Why don’t you ever say my name like that? What’s so special about this guy?” you turned to him with a bright grin, “He’s so elegant! And he looks so good in a suit!” Loki glared, draping himself across your lap like a cat, “I wore a suit, and you didn’t give me eyes like that!!” you couldn’t help but giggle, seeing that he was jealous, “Aww are you jealous of an actor?” his deep pout gave you your answer as he cuddled into your lap.

-Thor- Scowled lightly as you watched the actor in The Avengers who was playing the character by the same name, a grin on your face, in awe over his accent and personality. Thor looked down at you, wrapping an arm around your waist, hugging you a bit closer, “I don’t talk like that.” You grinned up at him, “Of course you don’t, this is the actor’s version of you.” He kept taking jabs, getting angrier that you kept defending the actor, “I don’t look like that. My hammer is bigger. Why is he so happy looking?” you quickly realized he was jealous that you were making eyes at another ‘version’ of him, making you tease him that he was jealous. The rest of the movie was forgotten as he pinned you down to prove he was better.

-Hermes- Pouted as you gushed over a character in your anime, Black Butler, Sebastian, who reminded you a lot of Hermes, wearing a suit, looking elegant but also intimidating at the same time. Hermes poked your cheek as he leaned down over the back of the couch, “You know I’m right here right? You have me you could be gushing over?” you looked up at him, realization quickly filling your eyes as you teased him, “Are you jealous over an anime character?” his cheeks turned red and you giggled before you wrapped your arms around his neck, pulling him down, pressing a kiss to his temple, “I just like him because he reminds me of you, but only I get to kiss you.”

-Apollo- His eyelid twitched, watching Ouran High School Host Club, watching Tamaki twirl around obnoxiously, cherry blossoms flowing around him as he shamelessly flirted with girls. Apollo scowled, “You like this guy?” you nodded, watching with sparkling eyes, “I do! He’s funny but also elegant and so pretty! He’s a lot like you!” Apollo instantly pouted, glaring harshly, offended that you thought he, the beautiful Apollo was like this anime character!! You pointed out all of the similarities, personality, actions, even over the top about looks, each one Apollo could only gawk, realizing that it was true, as he collapsed, gloom surrounding him, looking similar to Tamaki on the TV who was also collapsed.

-Poseidon- Scowled deeply, watching you practically drooling over Jason Momoa as Aquaman, watching him exiting the water without a shirt, “You know, a real sea god is right behind you.” You glanced back, smiling warmly as you greeted your love before you turned back, “I know that, but Jason is so hunky with that bod and that long hair!” Poseidon immediately grabbed your chin, forcing you to look at him before he kissed you deeply, making your eyes go hazy. He crawled on top of you on the couch, getting your attention from the movie. Once he pulled apart, he liked the look on your face, seeing you dazed. He then turned bright red as you grinned up at him, “You’re so cute when you’re jealous!”

[gxdsfavgal]

Step Aside

Pairing: Rafe Cameron x Kook!fem!Reader

Warning: arguing, just a very short blurb that could potentially be a short series, not edited

Part 2

-

-

There was a party happening this afternoon, I didn’t know who’s it was but everyone knows I’m up for anything.

I got invited by Kelce, my first friend on the island. He taught me the in’s and out’s of the island, in his words I am basically a native now.

But all I know is Pogues and Kooks is a thing here. I’m still not used to it, not used to how Kooks looks down on Pogues.

Anyways, I had a busy day with helping my parents with some paperwork and meetings but I definitely needed a break from reading fine print.

I got ready for the party at Cannyhill? Someplace that ended in ‘hill’. I just knew it wasn’t that far, and that it was definitely a Kook party.

The sun was still beaming even though it was late afternoon, so I decided that shorts and a regular top was the way to go. People here dress differently for these types of parties, designer all around even though they know it’s going to be covered in vomit later on in the night.

I quickly grabbed my things, spraying myself with my signature scent, and left in my car that I always dreamt of when I was younger. 

I sped down the streets with the salty wind in my face as I followed the GPS to the address Kelce sent me. 

As I arrived, I immediately could tell the vibe of this party. It was Kook Central, filled with expensive jungle juice and collared shirts. The loud music was definitely found through social media, because they definitely did not grow up around trap music.

I parked my car on the side of the road for easy access if this party turns out a bust. I walked through the pathway and into the grassy lawn where everyone was at. The music was loud and so was people’s cheers once they saw me.

“Heyyy! Look who’s here!” Kelce and his friends crowded me.

“Finally got out of that damn office.” I joked to them as one of the girls handed me a red solo cup, which I accepted and chugged.

Everyone else waved at me and said their ‘hellos’. 

I began to walk around and talk to the others there, creating conversation about parents and the beach club. Normal “Kook” things I guess that’s what they call it here in the OBX.

“So yeah, my dad got me Hermes sandals from his trip to New York but I hated the color so I just gave them to some lady on the main land.” a random girl whined about to me and her boyfriend ignoring the repetitive story.

“Oh wow. That is so sweet of you.” sarcasm flowed out with my words as my smile didn’t drop once.

“Hey, sorry to interrupt.” Kelce apologized to the couple I was talking to as I pulled me away. “Forgot to introduce you to the host.”

“Lead me to it” I followed behind him as he led me throughout the house, up until I reached the balcony that looked over the party.

There was only a few people up here, exclusive, seemed like you needed to be on the guest list to be up above everyone else.

“Rafe.” Kelce hollered.

A tan and tall body turned towards me, his arm around a shorter girl. Once both of them turned around I was able to see who the girl was.

“Sofia.” I nodded towards her with a friendly smile, and she nodded back with a awkward one.

“Who are you?” Rafe snapped. 

First red flag, having an attitude in the first interaction.

“Y/N Y/L/N” I held out my hand with a smile, hoping to change his tone.

He scoffed and ignored my handshake.

“So what’s got everyone hooting and hollering for you?” he twisted his neck, arm falling off of Sofia’s shoulder.

“That’s a good question. It’s weird, people call me the Kook Queen? I’m new so I do-”

“Kook Queen?” he laughed out loud, clutching his chest as if he was going into a heart attack.

“I mean she basically is the Kook Queen.” Sofia said softly with a chuckle from beside Rafe, which earned a hard stare.

His face was in shock, his eyebrows furrowed, and neck tilted.

“Dude. Her like great great great grandfather-

“I am a descendant of founder of the Outerbanks. It’s nice to see that you guys know your history here.” I laughed to his face while lightly smacking Kelce’s shoulder.

“Hey! Kook Queen has arrived!” I heard from behind me.

“Barry!” I walked up to him to give a light hug.

“How the fuck do you know her?” Rafe asked harshly.

“Calm down Country Club, she lives at Corolla.” Barry laughs as his hand rested on my shoulder. “A lot has changed when you went on your little vacay.”

“Holy shit.” Rafe mumbled under his breath.

“Big ass house ain’t it. Rich ass mofos.” Barry clapped as he left to go back inside Tannyhill.

My head turned quickly at the shadow in the corner of my eye, Rafe’s shadow that was very quick and heavy.

He cleared his throat and bent down to my level. “I think we got off on the wrong foot. I’m Rafe Cameron.” he put on a fake friendly smile as his hand was reached out for me to shake.

I happily took his hand and shook it firmly. “Nice to finally meet you Mister Cameron, it seems we have a scheduled meeting coming up soon.” I gave him a smile and a pat on his back. His eyes seemed to almost bulge out of his skull.

[honorarypines]

Losers Club x PJO AU thoughts part 1

since we have seven members of the Losers Club and seven main demigods in heroes of Olympus, I decided to make an au!!

Beverly Marsh -> daughter of Aphrodite, since she's super pretty and into fashion. She grew up with her human dad, and he was just as terrible as in the canon. The only explanation as to how he managed to pull a goddess, I think his agressiveness reminded her of Ares. Due to her good looks Bev was often sexualized and slut shamed by her classmates, before she got to the camp. She lowkey hates her godly parent. In the camp she tries her best to not stand out in any way, maybe aside from upgrading her camp outfit with some cool handmade accessories. She has the power of charmspeak, her weapon of choice is either a sling like in the books or a spear like in the movies, it's yet to be decided.

Richie Tozier -> son of Dionysus, for obvious reasons. Even the actor that plays mr D in the show looks like some dystopian bad future version of Rich where he didn't end up famous of something. Richie grew up with his mom, who was very sweet and protective of her son. He had really hard time in school due to his hardcore adhd and dyslexia. Most of his teacher never gave him a chance, bc they already labeled him as the troublemaker kid. Mrs Tozier sent Rich to camp out of free will, no unhappy tragic accidents here. When he got to the camp he quickly got along with most of the Hermes kids, and at one point got claimed by Mr D. Though Richie claims he's such a tough bad boy, he's actually a sweet kid and he really just wants his newfound father's attention and validation.

Bill Denbrough -> unclaimed. In the canon his parents got really neglectful after death of their younger child, and I think Bill being the only unclaimed in the group could somehow tackle him feeling ignored and not cared about. Also, only unclaimed in the group screams main character energy to me, and what is Billy if not a main character energy lol. Before he got to chb he met a younger demigod, Georgie (son of Posaidon bc of his love for boats perhaps). Before they managed to get to the camp Georgie died which left Bill completely devastated. His first friend is Eddie, they met in the Hermes cabin.

Eddie Kaspbrak -> son of Hermes, as he loves means of transportation and essentially is the losers' guide during their adventures (thx again for the help @asexualasshat!) When growing up, Eddie really struggled with his adhd and dyslexia, mostly because his mother would call him out for it all the time. For her it was yet another sickness of his, and since she couldn't heal it really, she treated Eddie like he was broken. She died in a monster attack before Eddie went to chb, otherwise I don't think he would ever get the chance to get to the camp. Since her death happened before Eddie could ever stand up to her, or at least realize she's in the wrong, Eds started putting her on a pedestal after she died. (He has yet to learn a lot among his friends!) During his first months in the camp, Eddie resented his brothers and sisters for their mischievous nature and love for pranks. He also hated suddenly living with so many people. He met Richie through his siblings, as Richie was friends with many of them. They didn't really get along at first lol. Bill is his first true friend. Eds' power is unusual sense of direction.

Mike Hanlon -> at first I wanted to make him a Demeter kid bc he lives on a farm, but I think I'm going with Hephaestus and let me explain why. In the movie canon his house burned down with his parents still inside, making Mike an orphan. Wouldn't it be just so angsty if Mike had fire powers, similarly to Leo Valdez from HoO? Brilliant angst potential. Let him find out the death of his parents had been his fault all along. Or maybe it's never been the case, maybe it's just what he's told by some villain? Also he's pretty smart and very hardworking, which are very Hephaestus kid traits. I think his grandpa could actually tell him about his demigod origins, since he was the only adult in IT canon that suspected something was Wrong with the town and shared it with his grandkid.

Ben Hanscom -> son of Athena obviously. Also, since in the canon we only meet his mom, in this au he now has two moms yay! His human mum was kinda toxic tho, basically she was a toned down version of Sonia Kaspbrak, just like in the book canon. Ben is a great architect and a major nerd. He quickly befriends Stanley, it's his first friend. Has even less hope for romancing Bev than in IT canon, as she's one of the Aphrodite kids, aka hottest people at the camp known for being heartbreakers. Bev adores the fact that he never sexualizes her and actually admires her other qualities, it draws her closer to him. Though he usually appeares sweet and calm, he can be a very fierce warrior if one of his friends is in danger.

Stanley Uris -> another not so obvious one. For now I'm going with Athena, bc of his intelligence and love for birds (here owls specifically). I want him to be able to communicate with owls, I know Athena kids usually do not display any powers, but I want to give Stan some cool abilities. I think it would be intersting to explore how finding out about greek gods affected his faith. I'm giving him an identity crisis over this yay. His dad definitely kept chb secret from him, as he wanted his son to follow in his footsteps and lead a normal life as rabbi. Stan is a great strategist, not so great on the battlefield, hates violence in any form. Ben is his favourite sibling. He's the Common Sense source in the group.

[bugwolfsstuff]

Here's a snippet of the Halloween fic wip, cause I decided to rewrite this chapter

@smileyalater @thel1ghtningthief @unubinary @bodeyeen2132

I am trying to fit a Valgrace plot

Camp Halfblood! Camp Halfblood! BE GLAD YOU'RE STILL ALIVE

Chapter 1. Leo’s Pov 

The meeting room of the Big House was in complete chaos and not of the fun kind when I walked in.  

Connor (or Travis? I can never tell them apart) Stoll from Hermes was picking at the peeling paint of the meeting table (which was really just a Ping-Pong table with foldable chairs around it). His brother was trying to put a whoopee cushion on my chair. Clarisse, my buddy Frank’s scary older sister from Ares was sharpening her spear Lamer. Clovis from Hypnos was slumped over in his seat, fast asleep. My friends Piper and Jason were in their seats looking really bored.  A girl with a blue bob was sitting in the Demeter seat looking like she was about to blow a gasket. She seemed to be Miranda’s replacement. 

The rest of the counsellors (the newbies) who I didn’t know were yelling amongst themselves. 

“What are we going to do?” I heard someone yell. “Miranda is dead!” 

Dios, I thought. Not something you want to hear when you walk in the room. Personally, I’d prefer it if every time I walked in everyone cheered and threw confetti. 

“No, she isn't you idiot! She’s in the infirmary!” Someone else yelled. 

Oh, that’s better, I thought. I squeezed my way past Clovis to my seat. Since I came back from, you know dying, my siblings made me head counsellor. So, it was up to me, Captain Valdez, supreme leader of Cabin Nine to sit at the Ping-Pong table with the big kids and help solve the latest camp crisis.... 

Whatever that crisis was. I’ve been in Bunker nine working on upgrading Festus for the past...three maybe five days? And Nyssa didn’t explain much except ‘Miranda got attacked in the fields, Leo get your butt to the Big House stat’. 

It was fine though; I figured this was going to be a quick meeting. In and out. Lots of people get attacked or mauled at camp. As much as I hate to say it, this was the normal at Camp. This was probably just going to be a quick meeting on weapon training and a slideshow presentation on the art of not dying. 

I pushed the whoopee cushion onto the floor and smiled at the Stoll brother closest to me, sliding into my seat “Hey, what’d I miss?” I asked. 

“Nothing much” Piper said across from me. 

I sighed, pulling out some pipe cleaners from my belt. “What even happened? Did the strawberries go rogue and start going on a rampage or something?” 

Before Piper could open her mouth to reply, Chiron, the camp’s unofficial camp director walked in—or more wheeled in, he was in his wheelchair. Will Solace from Apollo and what I'm assuming was the school year counsellor for Annabeth’s cabin followed him close behind, taking their seats. 

“Counsellors!” Chiron called over the noise, “Let’s come to order now,”  

The room fell into silence, and everyone looked at him and Will. 

He wheeled himself over to his spot at the end of the table “As some of you have already heard. Miranda is in the infirmary from very...” He cleared his throat, “.... gruesome injuries sustained from an attack in the Strawberry fields.” He glanced at Miranda’s blue haired replacement, “Don’t worry, she’s okay.” 

I felt like that was contradicting, but that seemed to calm her down. 

“Do we know what attacked Miranda?” Jason asked from the end of the table, looking cool in a rugged way, he was growing his hair out. He’s a son of Jupiter, so while me and Piper were living it up, starting super cool clubs and making up secret handshakes; He was on the other side of the Ping Pong table with the other big three kids, who were only there half of the time. 

Will Solace shook his head, pulling his bloody medical gloves off and putting them on the table (gross, dude), “No, no one saw it. It disappeared into the strawberry plants before anyone could see it properly.” He replied. 

“What about the bite mark? And the scratches?” Annabeth's brother asked, “That could help identify it!”. 

Will shook his head, “I already told you, that’s what’s weird about it, the bite didn’t look like any monster I’ve seen before.” He paused, frowning. “It looked… almost human.” 

Jason frowned too, “Maybe an Empusa?” 

“Doubt it,” Will said, “They usually go for men, and we would of saw it and it disappeared into the plants, very few things do that”. 

Miranda’s replacement perked up “Maybe the dryads saw something? We could ask—” 

Clarisse cut her off with a snort “Already tried, Sherman’s on a warpath. He asked the nymphs if they saw anything. They all refused to talk”. She lowered her spear, glancing around the room, “I uh...I wouldn’t be so sure on their loyalty.” 

Everyone stared at Clarisse. If we were in a movie the soundtrack would be going Dun dun dunnn, right then.  

Jason’s brow furrowed, “You think the Dryads are in on it?” 

“Not saying they are,” Clarisse replied, “But it’s suspicious they’re not talking. Normally, they’d be jumping to defend their territory.” 

“How dare you!” Miranda’s replacement looked around to see if anyone was going to back her up “You all can’t really be thinking—” 

Jason cut her off, “—So, the dryads clearly know something. That’s not good, this is more serious than we thought."  

I thought he could say that again. Even I knew how bad it was; if the nymphs were covering for a monster, then we were in Trouble with a capital T. Camp was surrounded by nature, they outnumber us. If they decided to do a plant uprising, we’d lose a lot more than the pretty ladies who serve our food at meals. 

He looked serious now, his blue eyes were deathly calm, like a storm right before the lightning strike. The small scar on his lip quivered. His elbows were up on the ping-pong table and his chin was resting on his chin, which meant he means business, and he was doing his ‘I have a plan; trust me I am the leader’ face. 

I looked down at my hands, I somehow managed to tie my pipe cleaners to both of my sleeves like hand cuffs. 

“Here’s what we’re gonna do,” Jason said slipping into his leader voice, and I decided to ignore my pipe cleaner imprisonment to listen to him, “Stolls, Clarisse, get your cabins to patrol the campgrounds, especially near the forest and the fields. Leo and Malcolm, both your cabins can collaborate on traps, right?” 

Annabeth’s brother—Malcolm, nodded. Clarisse grunted and the Stolls grinned. 

I saluted with both my hands (still handcuffed) “Aye Aye Commander Grace! I won't let you down!” I promised. 

Jason smiled at me before turning to Piper and continuing, I grinned back, “Okay, Piper, you and I are going to take a walk and try and figure out what’s up with the nymphs”. 

Piper nodded. 

Jason nodded back and then looked at the remaining counsellors, he went down the list of cabins, giving them each a job. No one argued with him. That was the thing with Jason’s leader voice, it was like charmspeak. When he spoke, you listened. 

[laughing-with-god]

What type of fashion do you think victor bts would wear including victor jungkook

oooh loves this q, if your gonna shift into my universe you prob need some visual help lmao! (i fully expect a report when you do!)

but this is roughly how I picture them;

Jin

I think Jin had a good fashion sense even before the games. his dad was the mayor of District One so I think he's always had to dress "presentable". I don't see him as a fashionista, but he does care about brands. if he was in our modern universe, he'd be the type to find Gucci very tacky and obnoxious but love Hermes and Ralph Lauren. classy and understated. honestly very "old money, country club" vibes. jin is a nepo baby lol

Jimin

there are two jimins - the one at the capitol and the one at district four. when he's in the capitol, he wears whatever his designer team arranges for him. he has lots of sponsors, and many are fashion brands so he's obligated to wear clothes or accessories from those brands. his team likes to market him as very chic and clean, lots of suits with the undershirt open to show his chest. however, when he's at home or just being himself, i think he's very in touch with his ocean roots. i see him in a "surfer boy" aesthetic, pearls, seashells, and free-flowing tops. in my universe, District Four is like a Florida or tropical place- so it's always sunny and hot.

namjoon

sweater vests. turtle necks. slacks. this is it. mainly in black, sometimes blue. very dark academia. does not really understand fashion and just wants to look as smart as he is. feel like he'd also be one of the victors who fired his designer team right away because he didn't get the point and hated being treated like a doll. sometimes he wants to try out diff styles but ultimately I see him being a creature of habit and being like "nah"

Hoseok

poor boy just wants to be cozy and warm. I think I had his games take place in the Arctic? so I think he'd be like really hypersensitive to the cold now. he feels one chill and he'll want to die. he would love oversized sweaters and cardigans. I can see him wearing lots of neutral colors too, browns and creams with hints of green here and there. Very 'coffee shop boyfriend' vibes. also think he's such older bro that he'd carry a lil fanny pack or bag all the time, he carries little snacks and stuff just in case his siblings ever need anything

Taehyung

tough one. I don't think he'd give a shit tbh. but he's from 11 and it's all about agriculture, so i feel like farmer vibes? like boyish cottage core. feel like he likes loose shirts as well, tae doesn't like feeling constricted so no tight clothes. also feel like he loves rolling his pants up and walking around barefoot. country boy to the core.

Yoongi

hoodies, loose fitting and oversized. likes beanies too. I think he has bad blood circulation and as a kid didn't get great access to food, so he's prob anemic and smaller than his Victor counterparts. a lil insecure about it so he covers it up with baggy clothes. another one that prefers darker colors like grey and black. capitol ppl are known for their colorful clothes since they can afford them, and yoongi isn't tryna associate with that.

Jungkook

i never made a victors revenge jk since i didn't know if i was just going to make it qq jk when he won the games lol. either way, i'm sticking with district two for him. so def a career and def a lil cray. i think he'd enjoy looking as intimidating as possible, fully leaning into the 'bloody thirsty career' reputation he has. I see him getting tats and piercings and wearing things like leather jackets and steel-toed boots. probably like "grunge" or "cyberpunk" aesthetic??

[olympushit]

Keeping up with the Olympians

#kuwto

Episode 2:

Preview:

Hera's statement for a divorce shakes things completely on the unholy mountain. Hermes has a promise to keep, while Aphrodite proves to be a helpless drama queen. Dionysos is okay and still partying.

----------

Scene 1: (Hermes and Apollo)

Hermes' confessional:

I had in mind to take Apollo to a strip club. I interrupted his orgy with the nine Muses so I have to make it up to him. I know, I love him too much!

Apollo: What is the surprise you have been talking about?

Hermes: Get dressed tonight! I have something very special for you!

Apollo: What is it! I'm dying to know! Please!

Apollo's confessional:

I love surprises but on the other hand I hate them. I don't like waiting! Exhilaration kills me!

Hermes: Dress slutty, that's all I'm saying!

Apollo: Oh.....

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

Scene 2: (Hera and Zeus)

Zeus confessional:

I'm still shaken by her behavior. I can't believe her! All that is for me to acquire better sex knowledge to please her even more in bed! Why can't she see that? Ungrateful wife!

Zeus: Are you serious about the divorce thing?

Hera: Absolutely! And don't try to change my mind!

Zeus: I'll promise I'll change!

Hera: LIIIIIIIIAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRR! YOU FUCKING LIAAAAAAAAARRRRRR! (Slams the table)

Hera's confessional:

Of course I'm sick amd tired of his behavior! The goddess of marriage can't stand being cheated on! But don't worry guys, I won't divorce him. I want him to come crawling back to me, and of course who wants to lose the title of "Queen of Heavens?"

Hera: It's final!

Zeus: Think about it again! You won't find another man as gorgeous as me!

Hera: That's the spirit! Someone who is not you!

______________

Scene 3: (Aphrodite and Ares spending some time in Ares' private pool in Thrace)

Aphrodite's confessional:

Thrace is a nice place! There's sea, sun, and naked Ares!

Ares: Do you like it babe?

Aphrodite: You know I love being spoilt in every way!

Ares: My beautiful woman!

(Kiss scene)

Ares confessional:

Spending time with this woman is amazing! I just love her! And of course I like getting naughty with her! (winks at camera)

(Ares lifting Aphrodite)

Aphrodite: Ares I don't wanna get wet!

Ares: You'll get wet anyway babe! Just enjoy it! (Throws her in the pool)

Aphrodite: MY DIAMOND EARRING!

Ares: What about it?

Aphrodite: I lost it! In the pool! (starts crying)

Ares: Aphrodite, there's people that are dying!

Aphrodite: It costs 75000$!

Aphrodite's confessional: (crying)

Those were the earrings Ares gifted me on our anniversary! We were celebrating the 678 time we had sex together!

Ares: You lost that earring!

Aphrodite cries aggressively.

_____________

Scene 4: (Hestia and Demeter)

(Both shaking their salads and proceed eating them)

Demeter: So did you hear about Hera's divorce?

Hestia: I did, and I don't feel surprised anymore!

Demeter death glares at Hestia

Demeter's confessional:

Did she just say that Hera deserves it? She is our sister! Such a backstabber!

Hestia:I didn't say it serves her right, I meant him!

Demeter: That wasn't very well-put to me!

Hestia: But I explained it!

Demeter: Unacceptable!

Hestia's confessional:

I don't wanna create drama around there, but Demeter's behavior is just not it!

____________

Scene 5: (Hades and Persephone in the Underworld)

Persephone: You were a rapist, you don't deserve Elysium! To the Tartarus!

Minoas looking at Hades

Hades: Whatever you say, your Honour!

Persephone: Did you just call me your "Honour"?

Hades: Yes Majesty!

Persephone: Oh my god Hades! Not there! You turn me on!

Minoas: Excuse me bro!

Hades death glares at him

Persephone: You excuse?

Hades: And I'm not your bro!

Hades' confessional:

This woman is a complete turn-on! I wanna do bad things to her!

Persephone's confessional:

Hades is a total sex slave and he likes it! I like willing men! I like the role play and he just understands the assignment!

______________

Scene 6: (Poseidon and Amphitrite)

Poseidon: I'm thinking about Triton's wish!

Amphitrite: Let lose for once honey! It's not that bad!

Poseidon: I think I'll just do so!

Poseidon's confessional:

Triton is at this age that boys think about one thing. And he asked me to be his mentor. I made up something to tell Amphitrite, because if she finds out that Triton wants to be a pornstar then the whole humanity will drown!

Triton: Dad! What do you think about what I told you earlier?

Amphitrite: We think it's okay!

Triton: YOU TOLD MUM?

Triton: AND SHE AGREED?

Amphitrite: I think I miss something?

Poseidon: Yes Triton! I'll buy you a kitty cat!

Triton's confessional:

Thanks goodness he found an excuse! My career is gonna take off! Mum will understand my abilities and will finally accept it!

____________

Scene 7: ( Apollo and Hermes at the strip club)

Apollo: Is this your surprise?

Hermes: I felt bad for interrupting your fun the other day!

Apollo: Let's get wasted!

Dionysos: Ohhhhhhhh! My bros are here!

Apollo: Wow! It's amazing!

Apollo's confessional:

What is better than 9 Muses? A whole fucking strip club!

Apollo: Shake that ass babe!

Hermes: Booty jiggling!

Dionysus: Best night ever!

Hermes' confessional:

I'm glad he liked it! But I have lost him for 2 hours straight! What do I do now?

____________

Scene 8: (Artemis and Athena)

Artemis: You wanna join today's hunt?

Athena: I'd love to but I am needed in Athens.

Artemis' confessional:

I love my sister but her ignoring me is outta my range of liking!

Artemis: So you don't wanna spend time with me?

Athena: I didn't say that!

Artemis: Can't you cancel it?

Athena: No! They're my devotees!

Artemis: Family is always first!

Athena: I didn't say otherwise!

Artemis: Ares might wanna add something to this!

Athena's confessional:

She plays a game she will surely lose! What a bitch!

Athena: You use my own spells against me Potter?

Artemis: Maybe Ares is right! You are so above anyone that it has blinded you!

Athena: I TOLD YOU I HAVE SOMEWHERE TO GO VERY POLITELY!

Artemis: You know what? JUST LEAVE! You are the least interesting person in this family afterall!

Athena's confessional:

That hurt and I don't have a big idea about myself! I just have a little appreciation for everyone who's dumb!

Artemis' confessional:

Such a bitch! She can't get away with everything!

________________

AND THAT'S EPISODE 2!

What do you think so far? Leave a comment below!

IT MUST REALLY BE A REALITY SHOW!

Till episode 3!✌️

[livealittleoc-cb]

Small Update!

🍷: Currently rushing to get ready cause Hermes decided we needed to do something for Thanksgiving even though I hate the holiday-. He just wants to snatch me before the cafe gets busy and I leave for vacation 🙄. As we are on the topic of that *laughs* the cafe will be open until Thanksgiving week, it’ll be closed and I’ll be in New York with Ace showing him my old family traditions. *snorts* Then it’ll be open again for the rest of the month for any last things and then I close for the whole month of December because I will be in Greece for Christmas, New Year’s and Epiphany. So make sure to stop by the cafe before it’s closed, we have a lot of Thanksgiving and Christmas themed goods and drinks along with deals. Don’t be shy and stop by.~

♥️: I woke up hungover-. The minute my family hit ground my cousins and Skyler decided we needed to go to the club so we went and I got drunk off my ass according to many sources. We’re going out again 🥰 I can’t drink this time around cause I’m the designated driver this time around so that sucks but at least I get to dance.~ I’m excited to celebrate Thanksgiving with Di and my Mas, they’ve never seen NY so it’ll be a lot of fun. December will be full of plane rides though-. We’re going to Mexico, the Philippines and Thailand to celebrate with relatives that couldn’t fly out and Christmas Day we come back and celebrate here.~ So busy, busy, busy!

⚰️: *writing* ‘My old band mates wanted to go out to a nice restaurant just to have some fun before the holidays. I feel a little bad just because their original plans were to go to a nice club but they know my anxiety hasn’t been all that well and changed it for me T-T. I love them they’re such great friends. I hope I’m dressed well enough, it’s a fancier restaurant. After today I have a couple of things to do, work, cabin trip with the kids and then December we go to Egypt for Christmas! I hope everyone is looking forward to the upcoming holidays ^^’

🩵🩵: @monsterhigh-cb [🐟🤍💍 && ⚡💙 && 👻💜 && 🐺💕 && 🎤💖 && 👑💛] @evicted-oc [☕️🤎 && 🐼🖤 && 🔦💛 && 🧊🩵 && 💄🖤] @theinvitation-bot [🐭🩶💒] @welcome-to-maniac [🐇🖤 💍 && 🌻❤️ && 🌕❤️‍🔥 && 🐿️❣️] @fantasyaespa [🐈 💚💍 && ☀️🩵] @k-venturetime [🍓❣️] @multi-joong [🌧️🧡💍 && 🎨💚] @kardpackcb [🌙💝 && 🐺❤️‍🔥]

possible new residents: @faywithlove @badbf-cb @clubwnderland @domxbot @welcometosector1 @lunaaofthemoon @reve-rv @multi-esme @the-hellhounds @san-cb @jinju-oc @enhanced-cb @camboys-com @lavienrosecabaretxo @oppositesattraxt @domrachaa @hwangsiblings-oc @coffeexdreamcb @silcntxnight @moonlightchn @blogger-yura @crimson-l @thesugaredalchemists @folklore-cb @doom-bc @hearthstone-apothecary @vandalsxcb @redlight-cb @inferno-cb @damnationinc @moongoddesselene @darkloversxcb @urluvlyfe @9ateez-multiau-bot @minsour-r @jeonsoyeonn @secretscb [DM + / -]

[witchywriterlythings]

Something This Way Comes

Chapter Fifteen: All My Choices Are Horrible

I knew it was going to be a big deal for us to come back successful, but with everything else happening I forgot that we would be the first questers to return alive to Half-Blood Hill since Luke. Despite Annabeth and Grover returning before me, it wasn’t until I got there that the party really started. 

According to camp tradition, we wore laurel wreaths to a big feast prepared in our honor, then led a procession down to the bonfire, where we got to burn the burial shrouds our cabins had made for us in our absence.

Annabeth's shroud was so beautiful—gray silk with embroidered owls. Her siblings had made it themselves, even the fabric had been woven by her oldest sister still at camp. 

“It’s a same you won’t get burned in it,” I told her, worried she wouldn’t understand. 

“Shut up, Seaweed Brain.” She punched my arm, but her grin told me she got it. When she caught sight of my shroud on the other hand, she wrinkled her nose. “I’m glad we aren’t burning you in that, it would be a waste of good wood.” 

I really couldn’t disagree. Being the son of Poseidon, I didn't have any cabin mates, so the Ares cabin had volunteered to make my shroud. I wasn’t really sure what I was looking at since it seemed like the War God’s cabin couldn’t agree if they were mad at me or not. The color scheme was on point, with a sort of tie dyed mix of blues and greens, but it was on an old fitted sheet and someone had written LOSER in bubble letters. 

It was fun to burn.

Then it was normal camp activities, like the Apollo cabin sing-along with smores. The entire Hermes cabin surrounded me as if nothing had happened, as if they didn’t abandon me the second my “parentage” came to light. But some of Annabeth’s siblings and Grover’s satyr buddies came over to hang out with us as well. 

Grover was beaming as the center of attention, the rest of the satyr’s were admiring the brand-new searcher's license he'd received from the Council of Cloven Elders. “They called me brave, can you believe it? I was just keeping those two alive, that was terrifying!”

“OI! Who hit Medusa in the face with a club? I’d say that’s pretty brave.” No one was allowed to discount my satyr, not even Grover himself. 

All his sputtering protests did was draw Annabeth’s attention, as she budged in with her own retellings of how Grover had been amazing and brave on our quest. And tghen I started telling her siblings about how she got us “maximum lift” in Waterland and almost splattered us over the waterpark, which made her blush and steal my s’more. 

The only ones not in the party mood were Clarisse and a few of her cabinmates, whose poisonous 

looks told me they'd never forgive me for beating their dad in a fight.

While having people hate me always sucked, it wasn’t like it was anything new. What was new though, was having friends. Like, more than just Grover. I moved back into cabin three, but it didn't feel so lonely anymore. I had Annabeth and some of the other campers to train with during the day. At night, I lay awake and listened to the sea, knowing it would welcome me when I was ready. 

I missed my cousins though, and it always hit me at night when I was laying there in the dark that I didn’t know what happened to them. None of my Iris-Messages were going through and now that I had returned to camp, I wasn’t allowed to leave again unless I was headed back to my mom. 

As for my mother, she had a chance at a new life. Her letter arrived a week after I got back to camp. Using the gift I had left her, she removed Gabe from her apartment and made sure he wouldn’t be coming back. Though it appears he’s gone missing, so she gave  a statement to the police. Her letters might be flown to us by Hermes express, but I figured she wanted to be more safe than sorry. “Your Uncle and Sister have been more than kind enough to take in that stray we found. They’ll make sure he gets what he deserves.”

On an unrelated note, she'd sold her first life-size concrete sculpture, entitled The Poker Player, to a collector, through an art gallery in Soho. She'd gotten so much money for it, she'd put a deposit down on a new apartment and made a payment on her first semester's tuition at NYU. The Soho gallery was clamoring for more of her work, which they called "a huge step forward in super-ugly neorealism." I don’t think I will be making any more statues, she wrote, but it’s always smart to keep tools on hand. I’ve given them to a Friend for safe keeping if I ever need them again. 

She told me she would understand if I chose to live at camp year round, considering who your father is, but that there was always a place for me with her. 

I folded the note carefully and set it on my bedside table. Every night before I went to sleep, I read it again, and I tried to decide how to answer her. Did I stay here where I could train?  Did I return home to one of the few people I would burn the world for? Could I leave Annabeth and Grover like that? 

Did I choose blood over whatever these invisible strings pulling me towards my new people were?

It was easier to think about staying when I was in the training arena with Annabeth, her knife against Riptide, or her showing me wrestling moves in case I ever slipped up and got too close to Clarisse. The more we practiced, the more I started being even with her. I was nowhere close to her skill level, but I was starting to learn her tells and I could sometimes use them to my advantage. 

She never let me use the same move twice though. 

It was easier to accept staying inside the barriers of camp when she was shoving me off the dock when we said we were going to go swimming, when I could reach out and pull her in with me and I could hear Grover laughing from shore. He got wet in the ensuing splash war, but then again we were all out of breath at  that point and grinning so I don’t think he was too upset about it. 

It was easier to connect with my new home when I was on the sand with Grover as he helped me learn some basic weavng with the Neireds, or when we helped clean up the forest with the dryads. 

But I still couldn’t choose. 

On the Fourth of July, the whole camp gathered at the beach for a fireworks display by cabin nine. Being Hephaestus's kids, they weren't going to settle for a few lame red-white-and-blue explosions. They'd anchored a barge offshore and loaded it with rockets the size of Patriot missiles. According to Annabeth, who'd seen the show before, the blasts would be sequenced so tightly they'd look like frames of animation across the sky. The finale was supposed to be a couple of hundred-foot-tall Spartan warriors who would crackle to life above the ocean, fight a battle, then explode into a million colors.

I had seen over the past few weeks a lot of the older gets get all blushy and gross over who they were going to watch them with, but Luke had told me most people just went with their friends. I didn’t even have to ask Annabeth, she just told me to carry the picnic blanket while she got the snacks. 

Grover was starting to smell of the Wild, of something animalistic and older. The Cloven Council were like a stale version of all the younger Satyrs, the ones who were searching. Some came back to help with half-bloods, taking breaks from the dangers. Others gave up, and they were the worst. But he made something inside me ache for an old friend I knew nothing about. 

"I'm off," he said. "I just came to say ... well, you know." He shuffled awkwardly in the sand. 

Annabeth gave him a hug. “Keep your feet on, you don’t want any mortals getting in your way.” She kept asking him questions about if he had everything, what his plan was, until she finally stopped when he put his hands on her shoulders. 

“You are an old mama goat in disguise,” he teased. But he didn't really sound annoyed. He gripped his walking stick and slung a backpack over his shoulder. He looked like any hitchhiker you might see on an American highway—nothing like the little runty boy I used to defend from bullies at Yancy Academy. He looked…almost like an adult. "Well," he said, "wish me luck."

He gave Annabeth another hug. He clapped me on the shoulder, then headed back through the dunes.

Fireworks exploded to life overhead: Hercules killing the Nemean lion, Artemis chasing the boar, George Washington (who, by the way, was a son of Athena) crossing the Delaware.

"Hey, Grover," I called, as my fingers itched and my gums felt sore. 

He turned at the edge of the woods.

"Be careful of traps. You’ve got a good nose, trust it.” I paused, knowing I didn’t want those to be the last words I said to him so I smiled broadly. “And wherever you're going—I hope they make good enchiladas."

Grover grinned, and then he was gone, the trees closing around him.

"We'll see him again," Annabeth said.

“Yeah,” I agreed.

We have to, went unsaid. 

I spent my days devising new strategies for capture-the-flag and making alliances with the other cabins to keep the banner out of the War Children's hands. I got to the top of the climbing wall for the first time without getting scorched by lava.

At one point I woke up to a stuffed animal in my arms that I definitely hadn't owned before, Gabe wasn't big on toys and most boys I had roomed with before would have torn apart anything “kiddy” I brought with me to school anyway. 

It took me a minute of blinking at it to realize that it was a dog, a three headed dog to be exact, and it smelled like dark soil and pomegranates. I decided to make an executive decision that Cabin Three would skip Arts and Crafts that morning for a lie in, and I pressed my face into it as I drifted back to sleep.

From time to time, I'd walk past the Big House, glance up at the attic windows, and think about the Oracle. I tried to convince myself that it's prophecy had come to completion.

You shall go west, and face the god who has turned.

Been there, done that—even though it came from a manipulated God of War instead of my Uncle as everyone feared. 

You shall find what was stolen, and see it safely returned.

Check. One master bolt delivered. One helm of darkness returned to its rightful owner. 

You shall be betrayed by one who calls you a friend.

This line was what truly bothered me about the whole thing. I could understand the last line just fine. And you shall fail to save what matters most, in the end, meaning my family. I was forced thrice over  to leave them behind, once each when I only had three pearls. And then the third time when I walked away from Gabe without his throat in my teeth. 

But no one who called me a friend had betrayed me. He Who Bears Arms didn’t claim my friendship, though He did manipulate me. But He was manipulated in turn. 

Did it still count?

The last night of the summer session came all too quickly.

The campers had one last meal together, siblings saying goodbye while I sat alone. Would this be what it was like if I stayed? Or would it be better because there would be so few of us? 

At the bonfire, the senior counselors awarded the end-of-summer beads. I got my own leather necklace, and when I saw the bead for my first summer, I was glad the firelight covered my bared teeth, or at least turned it into a smile. The design was pitch black, with a sea-green trident shimmering in the center.

"The choice was unanimous," Luke announced. "This bead commemorates the first Son of the Sea God at this camp, and the quest he undertook into the darkest part of the Underworld to stop a war!”

“But what about Annabeth and Grover? Where’s their part?” I go unheard over the cheering of the other campers, and I move to step forward, frustration building in my gut. I wouldn’t have survived without them, where is their recognition?

A hand on my arm stopped me and I relaxed into Annabeth’s hold even if it was light. 

“It’s okay, you know, that we aren’t on the bead. We’ve already received our laurels.” She used her free hand to findle with her new bead. “It was your quest, Percy, and you led us home. You deserve the credit for this one.” She looks up to smile at me and I grin back, everything about her telling me she’s not lying or hiding. “Good work, hero.” 

I was about to say something, I don’t know what though because she reached over and hugged me. A solid hug, with no life thrteatening dangers to be safe from. 

I think my brain short circuited a little. 

The next morning, I found a form letter on my bedside table. I knew Dionysus must've filled it out, because he stubbornly insisted on getting my name wrong:

Dear Peter Johnson,

If you intend to stay at CampHalf-Blood year-round, you must inform the Big House by noon today. If you do not announce your intentions, we will assume you have vacated your cabin or died a horrible death. Cleaning harpies will begin work at sundown. They will be authorized to eat any unregistered campers. All personal articles left behind will be incinerated in the lava pit.

Have a nice day!

Mr. D (Dionysus)

Camp Director, Olympian Council #12

That's another thing about ADHD. Deadlines just aren't real to me until I'm staring one in the face. Summer was over, and I still hadn't answered my mother, or the camp, about whether I'd be staying. Now I had only a few hours to decide.

Nine months of private school away from my mother, only coming home on holidays or free weekends if it was close enough, maybe looking for Nico and Bianca with my mom…or nine months of hero training with Annabeth, learning different dialects of Greek, swimming in the lake and not having to worry about anyone calling the cops on the weird kid swimming in December. I could make more friends, find some kids who might be like me and just are waiting in the shadows for the right moment. 

I swear one of the Fruitbearer’s children withered the grass with her anger over one of the Stoll brother's pranks, turning it pitch black. 

But I had to think so I decided I'd go down to the arena and do some sword practice. Maybe that would clear my head.

The campgrounds were mostly deserted, shimmering in the August heat. All the campers were in their cabins packing up, or running around with brooms and mops, getting ready for final inspection. Argus was helping some of the campers bfring their bags down to the camp shuttle, which would take them to the airport or station of their choosing.

Don't think about leaving yet, I told myself. Just train.

I got to the sword-fighters arena and immediately wanted to step away. My skin itched in the same way it did after a long day at the beach and sand had entered places it shouldn’t, the kind that you needed a hot shower to remove. 

Whatever was in that arena, it was wrong. 

And then I saw Luke. He was working solo, whaling on battle dummies with a sword I'd never seen before. It must've been a regular steel blade, because he was slashing the dummies' heads right off, stabbing through their straw-stuffed guts. Typically, the celestial bronze of our weapons took longer to affect mortal objects. The armor would clang, sure, but the first hundred or so swipies would pass right through the dummies. 

They were only dummies, but I still couldn't help being a bit uneasy. Luke always seemed so calm and brotherly, at least on the outside. This side of him was…

He saw me, and stopped mid-swing. "Percy."

"Um, sorry," I said, embarrassed at being caught. "I just—"

"It's okay," he said, lowering his sword. "Just doing some last-minute practice." Now that his sword wasn't swirling around, I could see that there was something wrong with it. The blade was two different types of metal—one edge bronze, the other steel. 

Being near it just made my skin itch worse. 

Luke noticed me looking at it, and I hoped my expression was schooled enough that he didn’t realie I knew anything was wrong. "Oh, this? New toy. This is Backbiter."

"Why?"

Luke turned the blade in the light, not really seeming to hear me. "One side is celestial bronze. The other is tempered steel. Works on mortals and immortals both."

"I didn't know they would make weapons like that." As far as I knew, Chiron’s policy was non-violence against mortals. Even if a few of them deserved to be punched in the face. 

"They probably can't," Luke agreed, his smile shifting away from his eyes and more into his teeth. I tensed at the threat. "It's one of a kind."He slid the sword into its scabbard and suddenly it was like the old Luke was back. He was still . "Listen, I was going to come looking for you. What do you say we go down to the woods one last time, look for something to fight?"

I don’t know why I wanted to go. Luke had always been one of Annabeth’s people, someone she’d try to get me to be friendly with and that I only really tolerated for her sake. And yet something was pushing me to go. "You think it's a good idea?" I asked, still hesitating. 

"Aw, come on." He rummaged in his gym bag and pulled out a six-pack of Cokes. "Drinks are on me."

I stared at the Cokes, wondering where the heck he'd gotten them. I was not heavy into soda like a lot of other kids my age, but if there was one thing I couldn't resist it was a Coke. Cherry Coke and I might have actually drooled, but the regular stuff was enough to break the last of my resolve as is. 

Maybe he just wanted to connect for Annabeth's sake, so when he came back next summer it wasn't as awkward. I could work with that. 

"Sure," I decided. "Why not?"

We walked down to the woods and kicked around for some kind of monster to fight, but it was too hot. All the monsters with any sense must've been taking siestas in their nice cool caves. I could smell faint traces of them on some of the trails, but they hadn't been through for a long time. 

We found a shady spot by the creek and sat on a big rock, drank our Cokes, and watched the sunlight in the woods.

It was actually sort of nice, sitting with someone in silence. I was curious where the naiads were, usually they liked quiet moments like this and would come say hi. 

After a while Luke said, "You miss being on a quest?"

“With almost dying every ten minutes to a new kind of monster?” Without everyone judging me and faking being my friend? “Parts of it. At least now I know my mom's alive.” 

A shadow passed over his face and I was forcefully reminded of the sandy feeling that I had been ignoring since the arena. I was tempted to look down at my arms, check to see if the skin was as rubbed raw as it felt. 

"I've lived at Half-Blood Hill year-round since I was fourteen," he told me. And for a moment what he was saying reminded me of Annabeth wanting a quest so badly, to prove herself. Did camp not welcome him back? Did he not receive his laurels? And what about his questmates?

He crumpled his Coke can and threw it into the creek, rolling his eyes when I immediately reached down to grab it. “Don’t bother, Percy. The nymphs won’t be able to take their petty revenge on me.” 

“You’re leaving.” 

Luke gave me a twisted smile to which I bared my teeth. "Oh, I'm leaving, all right, Percy. I brought you down here to say good-bye."

He snapped his fingers. A small fire burned a hole in the ground at my feet. Out crawled something glistening black, about the size of my hand. A scorpion. "I wouldn't," Luke cautioned. "Pit scorpions can jump up to fifteen feet. Its stinger can pierce right through your clothes. You'll be dead in sixty seconds."

It hit me then what Luke had been trying to do all summer, what place he was trying to make for himself in my life. You will be betrayed by one who calls you a friend. Not who I call a friend, who called me one. 

“Time to show your true colors then?”

He stood calmly and brushed off his jeans.

The scorpion paid him no attention. It kept its beady black eyes on me, clamping its pincers as it crawled onto my shoe.

"I saw a lot out there in the world, Percy," Luke said. "Didn't you feel it—the darkness gathering, the monsters growing stronger? I thought that you might have already been touched by it, you always were a bit different to the rest of us."

I snarled and let my facade drop, pleasure rolling through my shoulders as he actually took a step back away from me. The scorpion paused on my ankle. “You know nothing about me.” 

“I might not, but my master does. He’s very interested in you, Percy, but I don’t think you’ll listen. You’ve never really been fooled, have you? I thought I was making progress but your face when you saw Backbiter…” 

“The Crooked One got you in your dreams, is that it? He got you to steal the master bolt. Did he tell you to steal the helm too or did you come up with that on your own?” 

Luke's eye twitched. "He spoke to you, too, Percy. You should've listened." And like any Disney Villan, he began his monolouge. Of his plans, of his ‘rightceous’ anger. How it was worth throwing away Thalia’s sacrifice to get him and Annabeth here safely, how it was worth abandoning Annabeth. Just like her dad. Like her mom. 

The creek churned with my rage, though Luke was too involved in his own head to notice. "The flying shoes were cursed," I said. "They were supposed to drag me and the backpack into the Pit. But you almost sent Grover in instead, your old protector."

"He wasn’t my protector, all he cared about was Thalia! I was a tagalong! And you, you gave the shoes to the satyr, which wasn't part of the plan. Grover messes up everything he touches. He even confused the curse." Luke looked down at the scorpion, which was now sitting on my thigh. "You should have died in Tartarus, Percy. But don't worry, I'll leave you with my little friend to set things right."

"Thalia gave her life to save you," I said, gritting my teeth. "And this is how you repay her?"

"Don't speak of Thalia!" he shouted. "The gods let her die! That's one of the many things they will pay for." He looked like he was going to say something else, but then his face closed off.  "Good-bye, Percy. There is a new Golden Age coming. You won't be part of it."

He slashed his sword in an arc and disappeared in a ripple of darkness.

The scorpion lunged.

I reached out to swat it. 

Something lunged from the darkness and sliced threw the scorpion, a whir of black. When the world focused enough for me to see the shape of the being holding the sword, I could feel a feral grin spread across my face to match his own. 

I lunged. 

Nico had apparently been training as much as I had, because he immediately moved to trip me and moved his body out of the way instead of running. I was still bigger than him by a bit, he was only ten after all, but his excitement reminded me of a puppy and so I let him eventually get me on the ground. 

“I did it!” he exclaimed proudly while Bianca laughed from the shadows, and I was sure he was looking at her for approval. This is how you do siblings, right? You let them win sometimes?

I growled playfully and rolled out from under him while he was distracted. “How did you get out? I…we were in front of your dad and we didn't have time to get to you.” I rubbed the back of my neck, and I had to force myself not to pick at my scales. “I only had enough pearls for the three of us.” 

Bianca skipped over and gave me a hug, her scent oddly covered by something faintly pomegranate. “It's okay, we were never going to get out. Our Father came for us as soon as you disappeared, or at least he directed us towards somewhere safe while he dealt with you. He wanted to send us back to the hotel. Wipe our memories.” 

I growled lowly at the thought and reached out to grab Nico. He was very happy to stand there while I nuzzled his hair and Bianca just put a hand up when I went to do the same to her. 

“Our Step-Mother is Queen and She holds the right to oversee any decisions about Underworld citizens. Our Father might have the realm, but She is the one who controls its people.” Bianca dropped to sit on the ground, beaming. “She said we could keep our memories and be trained in the Underworld until we're ready to rejoin society.” She giggled. “Apparently she also believes in field trips. She quite likes the term.” 

Nico nodded enthusiastically and plopped right next to her. She reached out to pet his hair, making him rumble gently. 

“Is She watching us?” Not that I minded that much if She was going to let them see me, but I didn't like the thought of someone watching me without my knowledge. 

“No,” Bianca said. “Camp is the only place She'll leave us without her and She's been Called.” 

I flinched as I looked back to where the scorpion had been, now just a puddle of tar. “Do they know…?” 

“About you? I don't think so. The Charioteer announced that the prophecy would be coming to fruition soon, so they wanted to be prepared when it did.” 

I huffed. “How am I supposed to convince everyone that Luke was the thief? Yeah he's a son of Hermes, but stereotypes aside there is no evidence. You kind of killed all I had.” 

“Did you want to die?” Bianca raised an eyebrow at me. 

I growled in frustration. “No, but at least I could have proved it!” 

“How? You would have been dead!” 

“You don't know that!” 

Nico sat up glaring at us. “You two need to stop fighting. Here.” He pulled out his sword and before we could question what he was doing, he sliced a decent sized hash in my calf. 

It took a second for the pain to hit, but when it did I had to bite through my tongue to keep from swearing. As it was, I was sure I was making a lot of noise. 

Nico didn't seem phased in the slightest and just put his sword back in the shadows. “You should get help. We’ll make sure you don’t die before you get to camp.”

“What did you do?” Bianca reached over to my wound, her hands lighting on fire to quickly cauterize it. Mostly what she did was make it hurt more and almost make me pass out. “Sorry, sorry. I’m not very good at this yet.” 

“Now he has evidence he got attacked! As far as they're aware, Luke was the only one out here!” 

I growled lowly as I started losing the ability to talk through the pain. The wound itself felt like that one time we lost power in the winter and I ended up with frostbite, while where Bianca had tried to help was on fire. Still smoldering.  I tried standing to head to Camp, but my body just felt so heavy. 

“I’m sorry,” Bianca whispered as she pulled her brother into the shadows. 

I finally screamed. 

I think I blacked out at one point. All I can remember is flashes of green hair and panicked eyes. 

There was Kiron, his arms reaching for me. 

I managed to whisper the traitors name before I was back in the darkness.

I woke up with bees buzzing in my brain and a drinking straw in my mouth. 

Nectar. 

I really didn’t want to open my eyes but I knew I wasn’t alone, their scents spreading throughout the room from their worry. I groaned as I forced myself to look around. I was propped up in bed in the sickroom of the Big House, my leg completely wrapped like I had broken it.

Argus stood guard in the corner. Annabeth sat next to me, holding my nectar glass and dabbing a washcloth on my forehead.

"I didn’t take you for the nursing type.”

"You idiot," Annabeth said, which is how I knew she was overjoyed to see me conscious. "I had to make sure you didn’t die! That cut on your leg…"

“Now, now,” Chiron’s voice said. “Percy is safe, child.” He was sitting near the foot of my bed in human form, which was weird. His scent was muted like that, maybe that's why I didn't realize what he was? Back at Yancy? He smiled, but his face looked weary and pale, the way it did when he'd been up all night grading Latin papers. "How are you feeling?"

"Like a Popsicle."

"Apt, considering that was Stygian Iron that you were cut with. Now you must tell me, if you can, exactly what happened."

Between sips of nectar, I told them everything that happened with Luke, up until the part with the Scorpion. I changed it to him summoning something that cut me, but I was too out of it to see what it was.

The room was quiet for a long time but clearly something else was going on. Chiron eventually had to go, leaving me with a steaming Annabeth who looked like she could melt the ice in my drink with her glare. 

“Um…I didn’t exactly tell the whole truth.”

And then her glare was on me. I hated how her eyes narrowed like she already knew what I was going to say before I said it. “So Nico and Bianca decided to stop by… think their stepmom is meeting with Chiron right now.” 

Annabeth seemed like she would be the kind of girl to hate swearing but the words that came out of her mouth in ancient Greek were so filthy I was tempted to cover my ears. She finally settled on huffing and sitting on the bed with a pout. “So Nico did this.” 

“How do you know it wasn’t Bianca?”

“Did you do something stupid?”

“No.”

“Then it wasn’t Bianca, she seems smart enough not to hurt someone unless she’s really pissed.” 

I rolled my eyes at her. “You just think that because she’s a girl.”

Annabeth stuck her tongue out at me and we both grinned, before it slipped off her face with the clock announcing the hour. 

"What's wrong?" I asked her.

"Nothing." She set the glass on the table. "I … just took your advice about something. You … um … need anything?"

"Yeah. Help me up. I want to go outside."

It probably wasn’t the best idea, especially because it just showed off the few inches Annabeth had on me. I was also completely useless at walking as my leg refused to cooperate with me, basically dragging next to me as dead weight. 

Annabeth didn’t seem to mind carrying my extra weight; she had far more training than me after all and her arms showed it. I had heard some of the older kids talking about how girls with muscles were weird and I kind of wanted them to meet Annabeth so she could knock them on their asses.

Eventually we got to the porch railing, allowing me to lean on it instead of her. 

“What are you going to do?”

I shrugged. “I think Chiron wants me to stay here year-round, thinks the world out there is too dangerous for me or something. Plus all that time training? No one would get the better of me again.” I nudged her shoulder with mine and she purposefully ignored me. “I don’t know,” I admitted. “Maybe I should, but I don’t think I could stay. You’ll just have to survive the school year without me I’m afraid.” 

Annabeth pursed her lips, then said quietly, "I'm going home for the year, Percy."

I stared at her. "You mean, to your dad's?"

She pointed toward the crest of Half-Blood Hill. Next to Thalia's pine tree, at the very edge of the camp's magical boundaries, a family stood silhouetted—two little children, a woman, and a tall man with blond hair. They seemed to be waiting. The man was holding a backpack that looked like the one Annabeth had gotten from Waterland in Denver.

She explained how she had sent a letter when we got back and they’d been writing, since she wasn’t sure if she was ready for a phone call. They’d decided it was time for a second chance, and her dad had promised that this time things would be better. She wrung her hands as she looked at me, before throwing her arms over my shoulders and pulling me into a hug. “We’ll go on a quest next summer, okay? Go after Luke, even if we have to sneak out to do it.”

I hugged her back as tightly as she did me. “Deal.”

She pulled away with a cheeky smile. "Take care, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth told me. "Keep your eyes open."

"You too, Wise Girl." And like that, I knew I was headed home to my mom.

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