#pjo girlies know the truth

[himynameis4]

Okay i just. I can’t wait to see what yoy come up with I just really need to talk about my pjo headcanons. I—like, i’m so glad that pjogate is a thing now, but i don’t think you understand, this au has been living rent-free in my head for a WHILE. I have THOUGHTS, and seeing as i’ve seen how you dive into aus with ur atlagate, i just… i’m making your problem, basically. Whether or not anybody actually reads this, idk, but yeah.

Setting this au in a parallel universe, where none of the pjo characters exist but most of the lore/worldbuilding is similar, though i’m considering moving the timing of the Big Three Pact not to have kids, because I like the fact that Hades was one of the only one to never break the oath, and for this to take place in the 80s the oath has to take place later (thinking… “end” of Vietnam war, rather than the end of WWII, so 1973–2 years after Will & El were born).

I have Things to say about Camp Jupiter and legacies and families, but first, I wanna go through my parents for everyone really quick & then I’ll backtrack to give more backstory/plot for the au idea lurking in my head.

Dustin: Hephaestus

Billy, Steve, AND Max: Aphrodite

Robin: Hermes

Lucas: Apollo

Erica: Hermes

Argyle: Demeter

Eddie: Dionysus

Mike: Calliope*

Will: Hades*

El: Hades*

Henry: Arachne*

Jason, Chrissy, Patrick, Jonathan, Nancy, Joyce, Hopper, Troy, James, Lonnie, Ted, Karen, Holly: Roman Legacies*

Murray: Faun

*= will elaborate later

Dustin I think is a no-brainer. Ik ppl were talking about Aphrodite Lucas & Ares Max, Ares Max & Aphrodite Lucas, etc, but here’s the thing: Aphrodite suits Billy, Steve, and Max so perfectly. Shows the darker side of Aphrodite/Aphrodite’s power through Billy (Aphrodite is hardly harmless), Billy def has charmspeak tho lol. Steve is 100% Aphrodite—Imma be honest I was tempted with Poseidon, but even the swim captain bit works because Steve’s mom rose from the sea, so there’s still that connection. Max is like… challenging Aphrodite stereotypes while still enjoying “girlie” things like clothes & magazines (& continuing the Aphrodite tradition of Getting Bitches; see: Lucas & Dustin & El, though she’s only in an active relationship with two of those). Like Lucas, Max can be both. & we get the sibling dynamic between Max & Billy AND Max & Steve, which is perfection imo. Robin’s languages make her SUCH a good fit for Hermes. Plus, she has the chaotic energy necessary. Lucas is Apollo. His basketball skill which is referenced in PJO as an “apollo kid” thing, his SLINGSHOT?!?!?! Not to mention his singing (🎶 turn around… 🎶). Also, Lucas is LITERALLY sunshine, but more importantly, he’s Max’s LIGHT. Plus, Apollo is the god of truth, & we all saw how upset Lucas was at El in season one for lying. Erica, however, is Hermes. Capitalism? That entreprenerual spirit has Hermes written all over it. Here’s the thing. I love the Sinclairs and their marriage. They are one of the ONLY healthy marriages on the show, and I refuse to meddle with that. So, here’s how it went: Apollo had a threesome with the Sinclair parents, from which Lucas resulted. Hermes heard Apollo talking about how cool this couple was, decided he had to meet them, and fell into a whirlwind romance himself. Erica was born. Kiddos are half siblings in different cabins at camp who share 2/3 parents, with a healthy outlook on relationships, communication within relationships, and polyamory. (This will come in handy for Lucas, once his girlfriend gets a girlfriend). Argyle is Demeter, and also the camp weed provider. ‘Nough said, I think? Eddie is Dionysus. The way he channels dramatics into his DMing is so Dionysus-coded. We know he enjoys alcohol when stressed, which his father can relate too, I’m sure. Eddie would be a good Hermes (lockpick, hotwiring the car, hating that he has this skill bc of his criminal father the way Luke Castellan hates having an innate ability to pick locks in the demigod diaries), a good Apollo (his music, Corroded Coffin, etc), but Dionysus ultimately matches his energy best I feel.

This is where it gets interesting. Ik I listed Mike’s before El & Will, but Mike’s is ultimately more complicated than El & Will’s explanations, so I’m going to get to him after.

Will is Hades. “Zombie Boy”? Will is literally perfect for Hades, & it fits with his being ostracized within the community. Will’s connection to the Upsidedown/monsters is a lot like Nico’s ability to sense death. I know Will’s powers aren’t confirmed-confirmed, but the way Will keeps having flashes to the Upsidedown mirror’s Hazel Levesque’s flashbacks incredibly well. Will has the ability to communicate with/sense things that other people don’t understand, gives cryptic warnings based on his powers, etc. Also, I love the way Will parallels both Nico and Hazel, Nico’s struggles with his sexuality & attachment to a geeky game deemed “immature,” Hazel’s love of art & her childhood friend, BOTH of their willingness to sacrifice themselves for the people they love… these are also parallels I lean into further with my outline for some of his plot/backstory that makes me So Happy i can’t. But imma elaborate on that later lol.

El is also Hades. El… idk how many of you read Trials of Apollo, but El is a child of Nero. She had the misfortune of being his child back when Nero was still learning how to do the “raising kids” thing—he mostly wanted weapons, so he left it to a trusted ally, Brenner. “The numbers” were still the numbers—they all have their tattoos, etc, and their childhoods were still incredibly horrifying. Nero’s parenting style for Meg is after he’s worked out the kinks—El was the trial run. But here’s the thing, guys—for both will and el I was torn between Hades & Zeus, because of the lights, etc. But then I thought more about El’s powers. Remember that time Nico TURNED SOMEONE INTO A GHOST? Were y’all there when El banished a demogorgon & a Henry to the Upsidedown with her mind? Kinda reminds me of that time Nico opened a portal to the underworld & banished the unkillable skeletons down there, or the time(s. Plural.) he GHOSTED PEOPLE. Nico’s ghosting people, in turn, reminds me of El making them bleed with her mind. And the way El moves things with her mind? Ngl got me thinking of Hazel using her metal manipulation, and the way Hazel shapes reality around her. El’s ability to get in people’s heads/find people/view their memories reminds me of Nico’s ability to control dreams & find people in dreams, or of Hazel’s ability to share flashbacks and memories. And, y’know, their ability to SENSE people’s location if they’re in the underworld/risk of death. El’s belief that she’s a monster? SO Hades-child coded.

(Also btw remember that time Will talked about El using her powers to rig the games in vegas? Let’s just say the siblings have a lot of fun in the Lotus Casino. No i will not elaborate. Yet.)

Then we get Henry. Henry’s obsession with spiders got me pinning him as a demigod child of Arachne (likely with mist-manipulation skills), also a victim of Nero & Brenner’s parenting as “One”. Henry’s obsession with time sealed his fate as the guy trying to host Kronos & bring about the end of the world (not to mention his willingly merging with the mindflayer).

Now. Mike. Remember when I said Mike was… complicated? So, as a greek demigod, Mike is the child of Calliope. We all know Mike is a storyteller, and as such, I thought the muse of epics was a fitting parent for him. His love of DnD & storytelling & writing matches nicely. This version mike is in fact a musician (singer specifically) which, again, fits with calliope. Another child of calliope, orpheus, used his voice to pull his lover out of the underworld, which… I thought was a nice parallel. There are other reasons Calliope chose to be the mother of this particular child, though…

Because Mike wasn’t ALWAYS a child of Calliope in this universe.

Remember when I said this was set in the 80s? I lied… only a little bit. PART of it is set in the 80s… and part of it is set quite a few years later.

You see, before Mike was a son of Calliope, he was the son of Karen & Ted Wheeler. Before Mike was a Greek Demigod… he was a Roman Legacy.

Not that he remembers it, of course. But forgetfulness is par for the course when it comes to the Lethe, and if you want to be reincarnated, well. You have to pay the price.

OKAY i think i indulged my dramatic tendencies enough now ill elaborate. Basically, our story “starts” (sort of) in New Rome. The Hoppers, Byers, and Wheelers are all very old legacy families. (Exploring this au gave me the opportunity to worldbuild for New Rome which made me so happy I have so many new headcanons). I’ll give a brief breakdown of them (we’ll get to Jason, Chrissy, Patrick, Murray, etc. later).

The Byers:

Lonnie Byers is a Vulcan kid. Undecided if he’s a demigod or a legacy, but leaning towards demigod. (See: Lonnie’s car. I didn’t want to do some shit like make Lonnie a son of Bacchus & have that be an excuse for his alcoholism bc thats bs so I tried to look at what we actually KNOW ab Lonnie. This is what I came up with).

Joyce Byers is a MAJOR legacy. The thing about Camp Jupiter is, there are WAY more legacies than there are demigods. And because legacies have long family lines… you get New Rome families that have journeyed with New Rome/Camp Jupiter since Ancient Rome, since before that, even, families like Frank’s with a deep history. And you also get a lot of families/demigods/legacies intermingling, a lot of legacies related to multiple Roman gods because of this. Such is the case for Joyce Byers. She’s descended from the greek(ish? Don’t quote me on that, I’m not POSITIVE she can be considered greek though she’s in greek mythology) prophet Cassandra, blessed with foresight by Apollo but cursed (also by Apollo, who according to ToA cursed her because she rejected him) so that no one would believe her. This… is very Joyce. Joyce be spitting facts & the men in her life be calling her crazy but she’s like. Always right. Cassandra was said to have two twin sons, Teledamus and Pelops, who were murdered as children. In this au, one survived, and the Byers are descended from that one. On the godly side of things… Apollo decided he really liked Cassandra’s bloodline, I guess, because he had a kid with one of her son’s descendants at some point down the line (or HIS kid or his kid’s kid had a kid with one of her descendants), and so Joyce Byers has some Apollo genes in her. She’s also (potentially) related to Providentia, the minor Roman goddess of foresight, and Iris, the greek goddess of messages & rainbows, though I’m v v torn on that last one.

Jonathan Byers is related to all the godly people his parents are related to. Because Camp Jupiter was said to be so disconnected from the gods (we only really see Camp Jupiter post-Jason going missing, post-Percy making the gods promise to do better, during a time of crisis—and when we see it AFTER that policies have changed even MORE because of Jason. We never see Camp Jupiter in its disconnected from the gods era, but we know it had one from the books, so.) claiming, particularly for legacies, works a bit differently. When you know which gods you’re related to, because Camp Jupiter has records of your family line as a legacy, it’s less a matter of who-is-my-parent (singular) and more a matter of what-relative-likes-me-best (for legacies whose families have a history with New Rome). New Rome is much more comfortable with minor gods, and claiming is much less important. Or rather—it’s a polite lie that claiming aren’t important. They are. Still, you can have successful campers who know full well which gods they’re related to & yet are never claimed. In Jonathan’s case, he didn’t want to be claimed by Vulcan, because he didn’t want the connection to his father. He chose a deity his mother was descended from (Apollo, i think) & prayer to them, instead. Jonathan isn’t defined by his godly heritage—he continues to have a passion for photography. But Apollo is the god of truth & light, & Jonathan likes using photography to illuminate the truth about his subjects (see his rant to season one explaining to Nancy why he photographed her).

Will Byers is, as mentioned earlier, a Hades child. Hopefully, after reading all about his Roman legacy family, and learning that Will grew up in New Rome, and learning about the ban on Big Three kids in ‘73–two years after Will was born—you can see why this might be a problem. Will is the son of Joyce Byers. Joyce & Hades met when Joyce & Lonnie were on a break (it looked like they’d be getting divorced. Unfortunately, they got back together). When Will was born, it was safer to say he was Lonnie’s. Still, when Lonnie said shit like “That’s not my son”… she wondered how good she was at hiding it. (If will’s father had been anyone else, the Lares of new rome, the house ghosts/house gods, would’ve been gossping about his greekness like the gosspied about percy’s in SoN. As it is, Joyce hid Will by the skin of her teeth… and it didn’t last. More on that later.)

The Hoppers:

Hopper is a member of an old New Roman family. He’s related to Mercury, Mars, and Venus, among others.

Hopper’s daughter, Sara, had a mortal mother. When Sara got sick, Hopper brought Sara to New Rome in an attempt to treat her. Sara couldn’t be cured. (Maybe she didn’t have enough godly blood for ambrosia/nectar? I’m curious about toying with that—maybe that’s why New Rome uses unicorn draught more, bc of how many legacies can ONLY use that). Lupa eventually took Sara, as she takes all Roman descendants (whether demigod or legacy) to test them before they can be allowed to join Camp Jupiter. Remember, this is canon: Lupa eats the ones she deems too weak. Lupa eats Sara Hopper, and the talk in New Rome is what it always is when Lupa eats a child: Lupa knows best, it was for the good of us all, it was a kindness.

The Wheelers:

Ted is a legacy of Jupiter—a very, very distant legacy. Still, the connection to Jupiter & his family’s long history with New Rome garner Ted some respect. I haven’t decided if Jupiter claimed Ted (as his legacy, like Apollo did for Octavian) or not. Ted is also related to a minor god called Sancus—the god of honesty and vows, though more related to contracts, look it up its cool (think: friends don’t tell lies. Think: a promise is something you never, ever break). He’s probably also related to Mars & a few others, like Karen & Joyce & Hopper, because Old Families.

Karen is ALSO a member of a respected legacy family, known for being & claimed as a legacy of Venus.

Karen & Ted are a power couple

Nancy is related to all the gods her parents are related to, some of whom i haven’t listed. Nancy advances quickly in New Rome, though isn’t claimed. (The popular theory is that Jupiter and/or Mars are waiting for Nancy to impress them before claiming her). Nancy becomes a praetor, goes on a bunch of quests, is highly proficient in weaponry and as a leader/strategist/intellectual. (More to say on Nancy. A Lot more.)

Mike is also related to all the gods his parents are, just like Nancy, just like Holly. Essentially… Mike has big shoes to fill. And Mike, as he is (un-athletic, slow at running, bad at fighting, “frogface”) doesn’t fit the expectations for a legacy of Jupiter and Venus, for a Wheeler, for the brother of Nancy, for the son of Karen. Most expect that when Lupa summons him, she’ll eat him, and they talk about this openly and loudly around Mike. (See: Troy & James)

I have more lore, but i know i’ve rambled a lot already, so basically: these three families are at camp jupiter. As in canon, mike and will grew up together, and are best friends. The dodge taunts of “zombie boy” and “frogface” together, go to the elementary school in New Rome together, prepare for Camp jupiter together

(Btw, when Joyce & Hop joined Camp Jupiter, they 11, & were in the same cohort)

Then, when they’re 12, Lupa summons Will. Will’s worried. Mike thinks that’s ridiculous. Will’s the strongest person he knows, he’s great with a gun, he’s powerful—Lupa has no reason to reject him.

(Except for that he’s greek. Except for that he’s a son of Hades. Except for that he’s not supposed to be alive. Except for that THIS Big Three child isn’t a pawn in a goddess’ plan, THIS Big Three child isn’t the key to saving the world or Rome, THIS Big Three child isn’t coming to Lupa in years of conflict, or in the years after Percy Jackson got the gods to make Big Three Children legal again. THIS greek Big Three Child is simply a threat.

Not that Mike knows any of that. Even Will doesn’t know all of it before he meets Lupa—he just knows enough to stay hidden.)

Lupa tries to kill Will. Will, as a son of Hades, as a greek demigod, escapes into the Labyrinth. He encounters another demigod called Henry there, but… that’s a story for another day.

When Will doesn’t return, it is treated as par for the course, an acceptable loss. This infuriates Mike, who feels like… like he’s the only one who’s acting normal. Like he’s the only one who cares about Will. This plants the seed of resentment against the gods in Mike, the seed of anti-government leanings we see in canon (in mike and nancy and jonathan and joyce and hopper and—) (anarchist Mike Wheeler, Luke-was-right Mike Wheeler (not that luke exists in this universe but still)—& he starts Nancy down the pipeline, too.)

Joyce calls up Hopper, who she knows will understand having a child taken by Lupa. She’s sure her son is alive, that he’s reaching out to her (in her dreams, perhaps?). The labyrinth takes the place of the upsidedown in this au more or less. Jonathan leaves New Rome with Joyce & Hopper to try & find will. He tries to get nancy wheeler to care, reminding her that it’ll be her in his shoes soon, that everyone expects Lupa to eat Mike—but Nancy gets defensive & lets Jonathan leave. (She’ll regret that, later).

Mike eventually leaves, too. He stumbles upon a girl called eleven, on the run from her papa & Nero. She tells him that she’s a greek daughter of hades, in her season one way of speaking, and Mike outs together some clues about will, will’s power, and will’s heritage that he’d willfully ignored. They enter the labyrinth together, Mike and El. Mike gives El her nickname, tells her about will, tells her how they’re going to go back to new rome once they find him. El keeps mike from getting himself killed with his negative survival skills and utter lack of fighting prowess/athleticism.

Mike doesn’t find will. Mike never finds will, in fact. Not before he dies.

El does, though.

Hopper, Joyce, and Jonathan were able to find will in the labyrinth. Reunited, they make plans for will & jonathan to go to a place called Camp Half Blood, which will be better for greek demigod will (as long as he hides his father). (Jonathan is fine hiding his heritage; camp half blood is a bit of a culture shock for the byers, because of the emphasis of demigods & parentage & cabins-by parentage). I’m unclear on whether they find El in the labyrinth or in the casino itself; regardless, the clan meets el, learns of nero & the trimuvate’s plans, and ends up running into the lotus casino in an attempt to avoid the monsters tracking them down.

El & mike got split up in the maze. Nancy either brought mike home, or mike died. I think mike lived, though. He lived to 15. He lived to grow bitter towards the gods, to be claimed by his godly ancestor Sancus, to be summoned by Lupa. I can’t decide whether Lupa does kill Mike or not—kind of the whole point is that WE know Mike has value, but by Lupa’s standards, his life doesn’t, to show how insane it is to judge kids in this way. & to illuminate the flaws in camp jupiter, same as camp halfblood has its own. (Why a child army if you have adults????? Why eaten children when you can protect them?????).

That, or he jumped off a cliff at 12 in an attempt to save El. One of the two.

Nancy Wheeler lives to become praetor. She mourns Barb, taken by the dangerous lives demigods lead. She mourns Will Byers, pointlessly lost. She mourns her brother, who she didn’t do enough to protect. She tries to change the system from within, fails, wins more accolades, fails to change things, goes on more quests, and fails some more. Nancy’s violent edge that was so out of place in the canon universe, that was non-conformity, here allows her to conform and thrive. But, as in canon, Nancy grows to embrace non-conformity while retaining the aspects of herself that, while valued by general society, SHE enjoys/likes (her femininity, her intelligence, etc). She becomes a radical rather like Mike, and likely joins the Amazons. What I CAN’T decide is if she is blessed as a gift for a successful quest with eternal youth, for what an awful thing that is—most godly descendants never get to grow up, and Nancy’s reward for her efforts, for her blood and sweat and tears, is that SHE will never grow up either. But you can’t reject a gift from a god. Would be great if she could get something useful out of it, a way to change the system they’re stuck in, but…

She & Murray the faun bond over their bitterness.

Meanwhile, the Byers (Joyce Will El Hopper Jonathan) are trapped in the Lotus casino. Willel DO use their abilities to rig games. Willel also cry together when they sense mike die, their minds so foggy from the casino that they can barely understand what it is they’re sensing, why it is they’re crying. Eventually, decades after they first entered, they emerge from the casino in a new world, and resume their quest to camp half blood. (Not the 80s anymore).

Joyce & Hopper are perplexed that adults aren’t allowed in camp half blood, but. While jonathan enters with will and el (who was reluctant to go east, so close to nero), joyce and hopper begin their quest to take down nero (perhaps running into nancy wheeler or murray bauman or bob newby along the way).

Inside camp? Will & El & Jonathan hang in the Hermes cabin, Jonathan obviously (to Chiron) Roman, Will & El obviously powerful & dangerous. They make friends—Max from aphrodite, Dustin from hephaestus, Lucas from apollo, Argyle from Demeter…

And Mike, short for Michael. Son of Calliope, theater enthusiast, Hermes Cabin resident… and the reincarnation of Michael Wheeler, Roman Legacy.

Not that he remembers any of that, of course. Certainly not.

(On an unrelated note, he’s been having some incredibly vivid dreams lately—they feature the new kid, Will, but younger, more innocent, in a strange camp… They feature his sister El, but smaller, quieter, with a shaved head and a frantic edge, in a maze that never ends... )

(Calliope found the tragedy of it all romantic. Mike and Will are less inclined to agree.)

(I did not expect this to be this long jesus christ)

(But its written now ig)

Currently putting together all my thoughts about the pjogate guys... I will never know rest until I do the whole world building. I am obsessed, my mind will not know rest.